


The Bad Boy's Girl

by impressionism



Category: Original Work
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-10-12
Updated: 2019-10-24
Packaged: 2020-12-14 00:24:14
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 14
Words: 52,974
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21006635
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/impressionism/pseuds/impressionism





	1. Introduction

Mom and Dad are at it again, and I can hear their shouting through our paper-thin walls. They're still under the impression that if they shout downstairs, then I won’t be able to hear them. Sadly for them, and for me, I can hear each and every word crystal clear.

But that’s what they do. They fight up to the point where they want to tear each other’s hair out, and then they go to their room. Lately, however, my dad has taken to sleeping in the guest bedroom, which he then sneaks out of every morning before I go to school.

He still thinks that I don't know. 

I’m aware that things are bad between my parents, but they’ll never leave each other. They’re stubborn like that. I get that stubbornness from them, but I still hope that I’ll never be put in a situation like theirs. Not that I have to worry about finding someone I love and then ending up hating them, though, because the guy I love will never love me back. He’s too busy being in love with Nikki the Bitch. Wait, let me rewind and tell you exactly _why_ Nikki’s a bitch.

Nicole Andrea Bishop, also known as the reason behind every other bad thing in my life, is my ex-best friend and vice-captain of the varsity dance team. I’ve known her since kindergarten, when everything was rainbows and butterflies and sharing a cup of Jell-O meant that we were BFFs.

Best friends. That's what Nikki and I were for ten whole years. Then high school happened, and it chewed her up and spat her out as the new spawn of Satan.

Gone was the girl with missing front teeth who used to braid my hair and give me fashion makeovers. Gone was the girl with severe acne who stayed up all night with me, helping me prepare for the nightmare that was my Junior High French final. Gone was the girl who'd become a sister to me, who had dinner with my family every Saturday night before we started our weekly Gilmore Girls marathon.

By the time freshman year ended, she'd been possessed by the spirit of pre-bus-crash Regina George, and I was that pesky fly that buzzed around her. I fought to keep our friendship alive- I really did, but there was only so much my pride could suffer.

This is the part where I tell you that I used to be fat. Oh, and when I say fat, I don’t mean the kind of fat where you could wear skinny jeans and crop tops yet still find it in yourself to criticize those few extra pounds.

I weighed two hundred and fifty pounds. I was the girl who hid behind sweatpants and XXL hoodies, even though I secretly loved wearing skirts and dresses, because I didn't want to draw more attention to my body. But before you begin to pity me, let me assure you that I was never conscious about my weight. In fact, I was pretty okay with it. I didn’t diet, nor did I exercise (much to my mother’s chagrin), and I didn’t sacrifice small animals so that the gods would miraculously make me shed all the extra weight. I ate what I wanted, I stayed inside watching Gossip Girl on my laptop, and in school I was ignored- never bullied- but ignored. Nicole and I always giggled at the bullies in high-school movies, because it had seemed so over-the-top and unrealistic.

Then Nicole joined the dance team and suddenly the kids on top hated me. I can still hear them, you know- the catcalls and hushed (well, not completely hushed) whispers as Nicole and I sat together in the cafeteria. 

_ "What’s Nicole Andrea Bishop doing with a girl like her?”_  
_ "How did someone like her become friends with a girl like Nicole?”_  
_ “Why doesn’t Nicole just get rid of the extra weight?”_ Yeah, that one was hilarious.

Suffice it to say Nicole realized that I was damaging her reputation. So after months of avoiding my calls and not “having time” to hang out with me, she made it clear that I was now a bother to her and that we couldn’t be friends anymore.

I swallowed my pride and agreed. Just like that, ten years of friendship went down the drain, all because my best friend was too big of a coward to stand up to the people who questioned our friendship. Now, if she’d stayed a coward, I would’ve been okay with it, but she decided that one humungous character flaw wasn’t enough. Oh no, apparently the prerequisite for popularity is becoming some sort of twisted villain you find in the classic western movies. Which Nicole did.

While I returned for sophomore year eighty pounds lighter, she returned with a boyfriend. Not just any boyfriend at that. Nicole returned as the girlfriend of the boy I’d been crushing on since I was eight.

Jason “Jay” Stone was the first boy who ever brought me flowers. Well, if you consider a single, roughly plucked dandelion a flower. He did this when we were third graders and I came to school wearing my favorite bow. He told me I looked pretty and that was it—I was in love. As time went on we became good friends. Well, he was a good friend to me. I simply became tongue-tied in his presence. He was your typical All-American Boy with his blond hair, blue eyes, and enviable baseball skills. However, as I added pounds to my body, I became shy about my association with him. I was overweight and carried prepubescent awkwardness. I told myself that I wasn’t the kind of girl who deserved to spend time with Jay Stone, and I distanced myself from him.

Nicole knew full well how I felt about him. She even encouraged me to ask him out because she claimed he had a crush on me despite my weight problems. Let’s just say I was very, very opposed to the idea. However, during the summer before my sophomore year, I realized that maybe I’d finally stumbled upon a breakthrough. As I slaved over the treadmill and consumed my body weight in water, I felt that maybe this would be the year. The year when I’d finally have a shot, that I could finally be someone who could possibly flirt with Jay Stone.

I was in for a rude awakening.

The first time I saw Jay after that summer was in the school hallway just before the bell for first period rang. I had worn my favorite skirt- the skirt that I didn't dare wear to school when I was heavier, because I didn't want to draw attention to my thighs. I had worn my favorite fitted to- the top I didn't dare wear to school when I was heavier, because I didn't want to draw attention to my muffin top. I'd painstakingly curled my black hair into beach waves, I'd put on my favorite charm bracelets and necklaces, I'd learned how to apply eyeliner and eyeshadow on my monolids. However, my eye makeup ran down my face not five minutes later when I saw him.

He had his tongue down my best friend’s—sorry, my ex-best-friend’s—throat. If I’d eaten anything at all, the contents of my stomach would surely have made their way back up. I remember clearly feeling a viselike grip around my heart, like someone was squeezing it tightly, cracking it up into minuscule pieces. Tears stung my eyes and my throat closed up. It was one of the worst feelings of my life. 

I had lost Jay Stone, the love of my life, to my ex-best friend, and boy, did she rub it in my face. It was like losing all that weight made no difference to them. I was destined to remain Fatty Tessie, friendless and invisible to the only guy I’d ever wanted. But during all these years, I never dared to ask myself the simple question,_ Did I not deserve to be treated with respect, no matter how much I weighed or how I looked?_

***

Fast forward two years and here I am, a senior going into my second week of high school. Not quite shockingly, this senior was sitting at home on a Saturday night and stalking the love of her life on Facebook. Yes, I’ve grown into referring to myself in third person, because that’s what mind-numbing boredom does to you.

I’m scrolling through his profile, which seems to be filled with photos from his girlfriend in different stages of a selfie. Nauseating, that’s what this level of self-obsession is.

His profile picture is one of the two of them on the beach. He’s lifted her up around the waist and is kissing the side of her head as she grins that evil, Grim Reaper grin at the camera. I try blocking out the various pictures of Nicole as I veer deeper into Jay’s profile. He’s perfect, utterly beautiful with his messy golden hair and big round eyes. His smile, those dimples in his cheeks, the freckles on his nose, those sharp cheekbones...

How lovesick do I sound? But he won’t even look at me because he’s too busy making out with freaking Nicole Andrea Bishop. They’re the perfect couple. The kind that’s most likely to be voted Prom King and Queen. The kind who would eventually get married one day because it seems like the only logical conclusion. Perfection ends up with perfection, even if said perfection has a rotten, rotten core. Why can’t he see how evil his girlfriend is? How could he be blind to all her faults?

Oh wait, I remember. The fangs only come out when I’m around. Around him, she’s as harmless as a Chihuahua. Which is to say- still a lot, but at least it was more subtle. To give him credit, Jay always goes out of his way to say hello to me, and whenever we have class he offers to carry my books. Obviously I never let him because Nicole’s always just a few feet away with fire coming out of her nostrils.

I refresh his profile a couple of times because I’m feeling particularly sadistic. But my fingers freeze midway when I see a post. Not just any post- it’s The Post. The one that makes me want to shriek and throw the laptop fifty feet away. The death decree staring me right in the face says:

_“I’m coming home, brother. Better throw me a killer party, Jay Jay.”_

Curious to know who on earth could make me cower in fear, tremble in my proverbial boots, and wish that we still lived in the day and age of moats filled with alligators?

Well, the name that’s glaring at me viciously from the screen is Cole- Cole Stone, a name right up there with Nicole Andrea Bishop. The universe usually works in mysterious ways, right? Well, sometimes I feel like when it comes to me, the universe works with a slightly sickening sense of humor. What else would explain why the two people who've wreaked so much havoc in my life have rhyming names?

But I digress. My problem isn’t rhyming names, it’s the fact that Cole is...wait, Cole Stone is coming back to our town? 

Cole, for those unaware of why my skin crawls at the sound of his very name, is Jay’s stepbrother and the one person apart from Nicole who seems to have made a hobby of making me miserable. He bullied me relentlessly all through elementary school and junior high. However, before we started high school, he being the delinquent that he is, inevitably ended up where all the miscreants do. Military school has kept him away from me for three years now.

And now he’s coming back.

Cole Stone, the reason why the nurses in the emergency room and I are on a first-name basis, is coming back to town. Oh my God, there’s going to be two of them! Cole and Nicole will combine their evil satanic powers to make my life a living, breathing slasher flick.

I gulp and shut my laptop down, tossing it aside like it’s possessed.

Score one for the universe’s sickening sense of humor, and none for the wide-eyed girl who always ends up dead in the bathtub in horror movies.


	2. Chapter One: He's Bush and I'm Like His Mini Afghanistan

When my dad drops me off at school on Monday morning, I stealthily pull on the hood of my jacket. It's a remnant of the Fatty Tessie days, which is why it's so baggy that it almost swallows me. The mission is to be as invisible to the human eye as possible, and what better way to do that than wear something that “the new me” wouldn’t be caught dead wearing? A potato sack would be more flattering.

My father eyes me curiously as I tiptoe toward the building. I can always explain it to him later that I’m trying to save my life. When he finally drives away I rush, still on my tiptoes, imitating a bad spy thriller, and merge into the crowd of ALHS—so far, so good. The plan is to quickly grab my books from my locker, which might be the only way someone might identify me today. The strategy also involves sitting way at the back, about as noticeable as a flea on Yorkshire terrier. It’s funny how easy it is to channel James Bond when you’re in mortal danger.

Now, you might say that I’m overreacting, and that I don’t even know if Cole’s going to be in school today. But the thing is, I've known the boy long enough to be aware of his twisted schemes. He _will_ attack when I lower my defenses and that, my friends, is not going to be happening.

“Tessa.”

My cover’s been blown! I squeeze my eyes shut and start walking toward homeroom, which happens to be in the direction opposite of whomever it is that’s ruining my carefully constructed plan.

“Tessa, wait!”

I keep walking, glancing to the sides, hoping that Cole won’t jump out of some random corner with a paint gun in his hand. That devious baboon...he’s got minions now, does he?

You can tell paranoia does not suit me well.

I try to hurry as much as I can but I’m not fast enough. A hand clasps down on my shoulder and I open my mouth to scream but then my eye falls on the bracelet on the wrist of the person holding on to me and I sigh in relief. That charm bracelet with the ‘I Heart Nerds’ charm is familiar, and the owner happens to be my best friend. I know for certain that she doesn’t mean me physical harm, well, at least not intentionally.

“Why,” she pauses to take a deep breath, “are you...” deep breath again, “running so fast?” She’s panting like she’s just run a marathon instead of chasing me down a school corridor, but in her defense, she’s a bigger nerd than I am and exercise is a foreign concept for her.”

“Let’s get to class and I’ll explain,” I say, grabbing her arm and pulling her along before she attracts too much attention.

“Ooohh, I smell gossip.” She rubs her hands together manically and her green eyes shimmer in delight.

Meet Meghna Sharma, one of my best friends post-Nicole. We bonded over our mutual hatred of chemistry and late hours at the library. She’s an honors student destined for her dream school, Princeton. In her spare time she loves nothing more than knowing everything about everyone, even though that knowledge might not be credible. Meghna is beautiful, with her thick black hair, bright eyes, and long eyelashes. She looks like a doll, and I envy her ability to be studious and elegant while I am anything but.

We enter the classroom and as usual, Miss Sanchez is fast asleep in her chair while paper planes are whizzing by her head. The two of us spot our other best friend, Beth, sitting by the window, scribbling furiously over her notebook, and we head over to her direction.

“Hey, Beth!” I wince at the shrill tone of Meghna’s voice, but you cannot tone this girl down. Her morning greeting is a way of life.

Beth doesn’t look up and I realize that she’s in that zone. Her “I’m writing a song; come near me and I’ll kill you” zone, so I pry Meghna away from her and we both silently take our seats.

Beth Liang is my other best friend post-Nicole. She transferred to our school during sophomore year so she hasn’t witnessed Fatty Tessie, but what she has witnessed is Nicole's torment. She doesn't do well with bullies, and that's an understatement. If I had a penny for each time I've had to stop her from punching Nicole in the face, I'd be able to skip town and move to Timbuktu. She'd got that rocker chick look nailed with her distressed jeans and band T-shirts, along with her trademark leather jacket. Her black hair and eyeliner-smudged almond eyes only cement her intensity.

To others she might come across as a little scary, but she's one hell of a friend.

“So, are you going to tell me why you were running away from me like you’d just killed someone, and why you’re dressed like . . . that?” Meghna turns her nose up at my baggy clothes, and I try not to be offended. I dressed like this for the better part of my life, and nobody ever had a problem with it then.

“You don’t know?”

Apparently this is the worst thing to say to someone who feeds off gossip.

A crazed look comes over her face as her eyes become frantic.

“What? What don’t I know?”

“Cole Stone’s coming back.” I gulp and there’s a telling pause. The pause that echoes what I already know. The shock that comes across Meghna’s face lasts for only ten seconds as pity replaces it. She places her hand over mine and solemnly says, “I’m sorry.”

***

“I don’t get what the big deal is. Why is this Cole person so scary?” Beth asks as she takes a bite of her cheeseburger. Her face scrunches up in disgust as she spits it all out. Two years in this place and she’s not realized how bad the food is. We’re sitting hidden, in the farthest corner of the cafeteria that I could find, and surprisingly, I've made it to lunch alive. 

Meghna cuts me off before I even open my mouth. "Cole is Tessa's stalker," she says ith ease.

Beth's eyes bulge before I correct Meghna. “He’s not my stalker. He’s just someone specifically designed to torture me,” I say in an eerily calm manner.

“It can’t be that bad.” Beth shrugs and digs around her bag until she pulls out a half-eaten pack of chips that’s been folded over repeatedly.

“Yes, it can’t be bad because you know what’s bad? Bad is when you run out of chocolate and Ryan Gosling during the week, Beth. Cole and his reign of terror deserve a far better title.” Once again Meghna has taken to speaking for me. Hello—it’s my bully we’re discussing here.

“Is he hot?” Beth asks, smirking, and it takes a second for the question to register. I wait a few seconds to answer as I pull the proverbial knife from my back. Why does it matter if he’s hot? Hot monsters are still monsters.

“Oh, that boy puts Michelangelo’s David to shame!” Meghna sighs dreamily.

I hit her arm and she pouts. “It’s true, though, that guy is hot.”

If only she were wrong.

***

My seventh and final period arrives without me running into either of the twin horrors, Nicole or Cole. But that’s largely because Nicole’s been away at the regional dance competition for the better half of the day. The last class is unfortunately PE, and while I’m now much more comfortable with my body, the Old Tessie inside me still struggles to put on gym shorts whenever I'm in a two-mile radius of judgmental teenage boys.

But I still have to, because PE is a mandatory torture, right up there with Mystery Meat Monday. The bell for last period allows me to put my guard down. It’s safe to suppose that Cole isn’t in school today and since I haven’t seen Nicole, I realize that it’s been a pretty good day. Too soon, these words just came out too soon. I mentally curse myself and bite my tongue when I hear her.

“Hey, Fatty.” Gritting my teeth, I morph my face into a neutral expression. Turning on my heels in the locker room, I come face-to-face with the she-devil herself.

“Nicole,” I say, acknowledging her presence.

She stands there in her purple-and-yellow dance outfit, which basically consists of skimpy skirt and an even skimpier cropped top. Her blonde hair is pulled into a high ponytail and allows her features to stand out. Her skin is unblemished as always and glows even under the fluorescent lights. Her outfit accentuates the hazel in her eyes and her lips are smeared with neutral gloss. My ex-best friend is a stunner and she knows it. How she manages to look so good despite spending the day in a sweaty gym baffles me.

“I see you still aren’t doing the hip reduction exercises I told you about.”

Right. Mock me and my supposed huge butt. Leave it to us to run high school on the beauty standards for Victoria's Secret Angels.

“They don’t seem to have worked on you so I decided it would be a waste of my time.” The word vomit happens occasionally around her. I know better than to retaliate but this day has taken its toll on me. I’m exhausted and honest-to-God sick of being afraid.

She sneers and closes the distance between us until a few inches of space separate us. She obviously means to intimidate me and it has surely worked.

“What did you say?”

“Uh...nothing—I said nothing,” I stutter, the bravado fast disappearing.

“That’s what I thought. Now move out of my way,” She says, before shouldering me as she walks towards the door. 

After she leaves I find myself standing in the same spot for about ten minutes, struggling to stop myself from hyperventilating. I am not good with confrontations, and God knows what propelled me to talk back to Queen Bitch. I do some of the breathing exercises I’ve seen on TV, which prove to be pretty pointless. Still in shock mode, I walk to my locker, which is where I stash my gym bag and phone. I've taken to changing the combination every few months after a prank by Nicole and her cronies.

It’s more mortifying to walk around the school naked in real life than in any nightmare you’ll ever have.

After securing my belongings, I make my way back to the gym, only to be interrupted for the third time that day. This time, however, my heart reacts in the totally opposite way to how it had reacted to seeing Nicole.

My heart flutters, it flutters!

“There you are, Tessa. I’ve been looking for you all day.” Jason Stone comes into my line of sight, and I lean back against my locker to stop all the blood from rushing out of my head at the sight of his smile. 

“You have?” I sigh dreamily as he nears me, then mentally slap myself for sounding so silly. “You have?” I repeat with a deeper voice, although I still manage to sound like my dad when he choked on a chicken bone last week.

“Yeah, I have. I’ve been meaning to talk to you since yesterday, actually.”

I know I should listen to him, he’s obviously saying something important. But he’s just so beautiful. I let my eyes roam over his body, his face, his perfect blond hair..."

“Tessa?” He waves a hand in front of my face, making me crash-land into reality.

“Wh-what?”

“I wanted to know if you were okay.”

“I’m fine,” I reply, knowing that a full-blown smile’s on my face this very second. Jay’s so cute, caring about me, asking if I’m okay, talking to me even though his girlfriend is vehemently against it.

“Really?” He seems surprised. I wonder why?

“Yeah, totally. I was a little feverish on Sunday, but nothing some good old chicken soup can’t help.”

“No—I wasn’t—” He looks so cute when he’s confused!

“What?”

“What?” he repeats, his face scrunched up in adorable confusion. We take a second to regroup and I pull myself together. Jay squares his shoulders and looks at me sympathetically.

“Look, Tessa, I thought you should know that Cole’s coming back. He left a message and he’s going to spend his senior year here, at home.”

I know all of that, you beautiful creature, because I spend my weekend nights stalking you. But he doesn’t really need to know that. Time to put my nonexistent acting skills into play.

“What? Are you serious? I . . . wow, is he really coming back?” I exclaim.

“Yeah, he is.” Is it just me, or does Jay look as unhappy about it as I am? “I just wanted to see if you’re okay since your relationship with Cole . . .”

“It’s not a relationship, Jay, it’s tyranny. He’s Bush and I’m like his mini Afghanistan.”

He laughs, and the cute little dimples appear on his cheeks, making me melt.

“I forgot how funny you were.” His blue eyes shine as he grins at me, oh boy.

“Look, if he gives you any trouble, you come to me, okay?” he says seriously, and I nod.

“You’ll protect me?” I sound sappy to my own ears but to hell with it.

Jay scratches the back of his neck and mutters “yes” as I resist the urge to kiss the life out of him.

“Thank you, Jay, it means a lot to me.” There is a faint tinge of pink on his cheeks and it stays there when we walk into the gym together. Thankfully Nicole isn’t there, and for that hour, I can pretend that Jay is mine and that everything is perfect.


	3. Chapter Two: I'm Her Evil Russian Twin, Svetlana

“So, honey," my father begins as we sit together for dinner. "I hear that Cole’s back."

Oh, he isn’t back yet. _If he was, then I wouldn’t be sitting here in one piece,_ I think as I stab a dumpling with my chopsticks.

“He is? I didn’t know,” I reply. My mother snorts in disbelief before she chuckles.

“You two always were so adorable together. That boy could just never leave you alone,” she reminisces fondly, as I struggle to contemplate which part of the misery I had been put through looked “adorable” to my mother.

“I wish he had,” I grumble.

“Now Tess, we can’t have you on bad terms with the sheriff’s son, can we? It’s election year and we need all the help we can get,” my dad say. I give him my best “Are you kidding me?” look. If he wants me to suck up to my nemesis just to make him win an election, he can kiss his office good-bye.

"Especially since your father was such a disappointment this last term,” my mom says sweetly, making sure that her words sting as much as physically possible. I can sense the beginnings of a fight, so I shovel down my dinner in record time. All thoughts of Cole are forgotten and I rush upstairs before someone starts throwing cutlery around.

“Travis, get up!” I yell from outside my brother’s door, banging on it three times and stopping when he utters his usual greeting, a string of curse words bad enough to make a sailor faint. It's a part of our daily ritual. Alarm clocks don’t work for my older brother, so I’ve taken on the duty of making sure he hasn’t slipped into a coma.

It might seem strange that my brother wakes up around dinnertime, but we’ve all gotten used to his nocturnal nature. My parents understand that they’ve lost their prodigal son, and I’ve realized that the best way to deal with new Travis is to keep a safe distance.

See, Travis is now twenty-one, and he still lives at home because he got kicked out of his college. Kicked out for plagiarizing a paper at that- pretty dumb for a straight-A student. Then the love of his life dumped him and he resorted to alcohol in order to, and I quote, “Deal with this shit.”

Ever since last year he’s almost always been chronically hungover, and as much as my father wants to, he can’t do anything about it. He’s the mayor and he can’t be airing his dirty laundry in public. When someone asks about Travis, we either ignore them or say something along the lines of how he’s working on his other “ambitions,” like writing the next great American novel.

In the middle of this dysfunctional family we have me. Unhinged and facing a nuclear attack; others might refer to it as Cole Stone’s return.

***

I plop down on my bed and take out the material needed for my homework. I have an essay due tomorrow, which I’ve written already. Okay, so I outlined and wrote it the day it was assigned, but double-checking never hurts. It’s what you do when doing homework is the only thing you have to occupy yourself with. Nicole has made sure that I’m shunned from any sort of activity that might actually involve me being social.

I’m proofreading the essay and adding footnotes when my dad enters my room. His face is flushed and it’s because of the screaming match that just ended downstairs.

“Are you free, Tess?” he asks expectantly.

“Well, not exactly, I have this assignment—”

It’s like he hasn’t even heard what I just said as he thrusts a folder into my hands. “Good, I need you to take these to the sheriff right now. I would’ve done it myself but I’m going to head out and he needs these right away.”

“But Dad . . .”

“He wants me to go to the Stones’? Is he out of his mind? Am I that big of a disappointment to him that he’s readily sending me to my end? I can’t go to the sheriff’s house because that sheriff fathered Cole. If Cole’s back, then going over to his place is as inviting as poking a beehive. Been there, done that, and it’s not pleasant.

“You’ll do exactly as I say, Tess, or you’ll be grounded,” he says smugly.

“Then ground me,” I tell him with a huge grin on my face.

It’s not like I go anywhere except the occasional mall excursion with Megan and Beth. Neither of them are keen shoppers, so we mostly end up sitting at Starbucks while Beth winds up inside a music store, lost for hours as Megan catches me up on the latest gossip.

He sighs. “Just do it, Tess. No arguments. I would’ve sent your brother, but either he's too drunk to walk in a straight line, or he'll be to hungover to actually remember what I said."

“But Dad, Cole might be there, and you of all people should know how bad he is to me!” I whine, practically willing to fall to his feet and beg him not to make me go.

“Sweetheart, now is not the time for theatrics." He pulls me upright and pushes me towards my bedroom door. "Take these papers and go.” 

“You’re a cruel and heartless parent. You know that, right?” I say as he walks me down the stairs and to the front door, which he oh so graciously opens for me.

“You don’t become the mayor by being nice. Now hurry along.”

Then he shuts the door in my face.

Bloody brilliant. I wonder how many bones I’d break trying to sneak back into my room on the second floor.

***

I wish I could say that the Stone residence is miles and miles away. If that were the case, I could say that I experienced severe dehydration, fainted, and ended up at the local hospital. The image of my father apologizing profusely for being such a dictator is surprisingly pleasant.

Sadly for me, the universe never fails to deliver, and it only takes about five minutes before I end up outside their mammoth three-story house. Farrow Hill is a town filled with people who have old money. Houses are more like estates, and the residents tend to be obscenely rich. Sheriff Stone may not be making millions but he comes from money and it shows. It’s the same for my own parents, which means that I’ve long stopped being intimidated by the grandeur.

My hand lingers on the bell as I imagine all the possible scenarios that might occur if Cole actually is inside. Most of them end up with me in the local hospital with a lot of broken bones and a badly bruised ego. While Cole has never physically hurt me, many of his pranks have been designed to target my obvious lack of coordination, and somehow I always end up in a cast. Now, even though I haven't been there for nearly four years, it's not like I exactly miss the place and the wonderful smell of disinfectant. I'd rather not visit old Martha, who's my favorite nurse, anytime soon. 

I squeeze my eyes shut and press the damned buzzer twice. After waiting five minutes, I decide to turn the doorknob. Maybe I’m lucky and no one’s home. That way I can drop off the papers without human interaction.

The sheriff often spends long hours at the police station, and his second wife, Jay’s mom Cassandra, is a doctor who works late-night shifts at the hospital. Jay could be out, too, I think grudgingly. He could be canoodling with Nicole, and the thought makes me clench my fists.

Luckily, I turn the knob and the door opens. Saying a quick thank-you prayer, I stick my head inside to find the entrance room empty. A single light illuminates the path to the kitchen, which is mostly dark. From memory I recall that the boys’ rooms are upstairs while Sheriff Stone’s is down here. I step in lightly, just so that I don’t make a sound. I was told to deliver the papers to a person and not just leave them lying around, but I could always tell my dad that no one was home. I walk farther into the house clutching the file in my hands, treading slightly. I leave the folder on a small desk that holds some other important-looking documents.

“Think fast, Tessie!” comes a voice that sends chills up my spine, and my head shoots up instinctively. A rookie mistake after all these years.

The moment I look up I see the bucket in his hands but, as usual, I'm too slow to respond in time. Cole stands half hidden behind the banisters as he spills the contents of said bucket directly onto me. In a matter of seconds, I'm completely drenched in a mixture of ice-cold water and green food coloring. While the shock settles in, I hear the burst of evil laughter that erupts from the monster’s mouth. I stand there open-mouthed and soaked, the fact that I’d just been pranked not settling in.

He basically skips down the stairs, still laughing, as I stand rooted to my spot.

“Ah, Tessie, how I’ve missed you.” He chuckles when he nears me but the amusement in his face dies when he sees me. “You’re not Tessie.” He frowns, standing right in front of me.

Ladies and gentlemen, meet Cole Stone. An entire six feet one of pure evilness, he could fool the world with his shaggy brown hair and baby blue eyes, but not me. On first seeing him, any other person would see a devastatingly gorgeous, runway model God, but I’d call that person a fool. I see him for exactly who he is, and that’s the devil incarnate. He’s a jerk, a complete dickleweed filled and, and he’s . . .

Checking me out. Damn it! I need him to stop staring at me while I look like a drenched green Smurfette.”

“But you’re still an immature prat,” I seethe as I pull my soaked T-shirt away from me and push away the hair that’s stuck to my mouth. Attractive, Tessa, attractive.

“You called me a prat and you’re in my house when Tessie’s father said she’d be here. Who are you and what have you done to my shortcake?” he exclaims, gripping my shoulders and pushing me forward.

I slap his chest and push away. “Firstly, I’m five foot six, so calling me ‘shortcake’ doesn’t make sense, and second, don’t touch me ever again, Stone, or I will castrate you."

“Seriously, the only girl who could want harm to come to my balls would be Tessie, but you aren’t her . . .”

“No, I’m her evil Russian twin, Svetlana, and I’m here to kill you in your sleep,” I growl at him.

“The sarcasm, the threat to my balls, and calling me a prat when you want to curse so badly. You really are Tessie, aren’t you?” he says like he’s in shock.

In his defense, the last time he saw me I weighed as much as two sumo wrestlers and proudly sported a double chin. My hair had always been stuck in the unfashionable bob while now it reached my waist. It’s soaked and frizzing at the speed of sound, but it’s still long.

“Oh, I’m so grateful that you believe me, now get out of my way.”

“Tessie, you look different,” he says, still looking slightly dazed, turning a deaf ear to all the profanities coming out of my mouth as I realize that my teeth are chattering.

I try not to blush when under his attention, but he’s basically the first guy to notice me and my cheeks can’t help but heat up. I cannot seriously be blushing because of something Cole Stone said. That's sacrilege.

But he’s here. He’s actually here, in the flesh, and I’m blushing, for crying out loud.

“Well, that’s more than what I can say for you; you’re still as ugly as ever.” I stick my tongue out at him and he smirks, bloody conceited jerk.

“That doesn’t seem to be a popular opinion. In fact, the women I know have referred to me as a god on multiple occasions.” He wiggles his eyebrows and I feel my dinner coming back up.

“Okay, all right, way too much information. You’re making me sick, and I should leave before I throw up.”

“Like you did in third grade during your memorable performance as Snow White?” he says innocently and I glare at him.

“You! You gave me that rancid cupcake-I did _not_ throw up because of nerves!”

Although chances are that the cupcake was perfectly fine and I did throw up because of nerves, but I'll never admit that to him.

“Whatever you want to believe, sweetheart.”

I groan and push past him, heading for the door. But it just so happens to open before I can get to it, and with my luck being as brilliant as it is, Jay walks inside, because of course the universe would align that way. 

“Tessa?” His eyes widen as he takes in my appearance. Great. Just great. The one time I run into him without Nicole standing over his shoulder, I look like a dog that’s just been hosed down and dipped in green Jell-O. Oh, the joys of being Tessa Liang.

“Hi, Jay,” I say stupidly and give him a small smile. He smiles back awkwardly and we stand in silence just staring at each other. It’s the perfect silence, the kind that is in all the romance novels I read. It’s the kind that is only interrupted when the guy kisses the girl and everything becomes magical.

However, this one ends because Cole starts making fake gagging sounds.

This is my version of a romance novel, and it would make the publishers of Harlequin shed tears of blood.

“You guys are pathetic.” He pretends to choke, and I wish he really would. Jay glares at him and strides past me to hit him on the back of his head.

“I thought I told you to leave her alone,” he growls, but Cole just rolls his eyes.

“You’re jealous, aren’t you? Christ, what’s wrong with you?” he says to his stepbrother, who averts his gaze shamefully.

“Why would I be jealous?”

I immediately wince at the lack of care in Jay’s voice, but try not to show the hurt.

“You would care or wouldn’t be nearly this blind if you could escape the leash your girlfriend’s got you on.”

“You don’t know what you’re talking about.” I see Jay’s temper rising but the conversation has stopped making sense to me.

“I know enough, bro.” Cole pats Jay’s shoulder in fake sympathy.

“Come on, shortcake, let me get you some dry clothes before you become a human Popsicle.” He says this without taking his eyes off his brother. Both seem to be involved in some sort of staring contest, but it's Jay who gives up first and turns to face me.

"You can come with me. I'll get you a towel and maybe a different set of clothes," he says kindly, and I nod eagerly before Cole snorts and destroys the moment once again.

“I don’t think that’s a good idea, Jay Jay. What will your girlfriend say when she finds out you’ve been spending time with Tessie here?”

I’m about to tell him off and say that Jay isn’t afraid of Nicole and that he can be friends with me without thinking about how Nicole would react. But the hesitation that comes across his face is like a punch to the stomach as I realize that Cole’s hit the nail right on the head. Jay pulls away from me like there’s some sort of invisible force field between us.

A force field named Nicole Andrea Bishop.

Before I know it, Cole’s tugging me by the hand and guiding me up to his room. I keep my eyes on Jay even though he’s trying to look anywhere but at me. I’m in love with the guy but sometimes I wish he was stronger than this.

Cole pulls me into his room, or what looks like the framework of one. White sheets cover the bed and the two-seater while boxes are lined up everywhere. A thin film of dust coats every visible surface, and I wrinkle my nose when I notice the pigsty that is his floor. Clothes are strewn all over it and I tiptoe carefully, hoping to avoid coming across his underwear.

Cole is digging into one of the boxes and produces a hoodie.

“Catch, shortcake,” he says, but with my reflexes, the hoodie smacks me right in the face, nearly blinding me in the process.

“Thanks,” I say, my voice muffled by the fabric as I bolt for the nearest bathroom. I turn the faucet on and splash some cold water on my face. I’m feeling a bit dazed, the twilight zone lingers in the periphery. Since when is Cole nice? Okay, so he’s being nice after turning me into a wet poodle, but I know what I saw in his interaction with Jay. It looked like he was standing up for me. But why?

Scratch that, I’m not analyzing his actions. He belongs in the one confined box in my head, the one for people I severely dislike.

When I come back, Cole is lying down on his bed staring at the ceiling, his hands clasped beneath his head. He smirks slightly as I enter, and props himself up on one elbow.

“This is the part where I say you look sexier in my clothes than I ever did, but the narcissist in me won't let me do that."

"I'd rather you not."

“No, I’m serious, Tessie, you’ve really changed. And before you start calling me a shallow pig, what I mean is that you just stood up to me and I didn’t expect that.”

“So the water dumping was some kind of twisted experiment? To see how I would react? You do realize how wrong that sounds, don’t you?”

“Okay, so maybe I shouldn’t have done that—scratch that, it was a stupid move. Would you believe me if I said that I was nervous?”

He sounds serious, and for a moment I let myself believe that he means everything he says. I let myself believe that he might actually have a human side to him. I don’t often let myself make excuses for his actions, and before knowing that he would be coming back I had managed to forget about our history. But this moment feels different, he seems different.

“So, what? You want me to believe that I make you nervous?”

At first he seems at a loss for an answer but then he says, “So do math tests, so you shouldn’t really conflate that with me actually liking you.”

Then again, I’d rather just slap him than have him say nice or crude things to me.

“I would rather pull my teeth out with pliers than ever imagine being someone you liked in any sense, Stone.” I cross my arms in front of my chest to look intimidating.

“Oh, but you like me, don’t you? After all those years of verbal sparring and pranks, I think your heart may have warmed toward me at some point. I won’t blame you, though.”  
I scoff at his arrogance and realize that I'm just killing brain cells by trying to reason with him, so I decide to make a run for it.

“Well, it’s been a pleasure having you back to ruin my life, but I need to go before I strangle you.”

“Kinky.” He winks at me and I throw my hands in the air, exasperated to a point where the instinct to just put an end to his life is uncannily strong.

“Good-bye, Cole.”

I turn on my heel and slam his door shut as he laughs behind me. I haven't been in the house for more than thirty minutes, but it feels like Cole and I have been at each other's throats for a century. A dull ache is spreading through my skull as I realize that today’s only the first of many to come and that he’s back for good. Any peace and quiet that I had expected in my senior year evaporated the minute He-devil decided to return to our great town. I’d learned to deal with Nicole, albeit in the most cowardly way ever, but we were coexisting and it’s been okay. Apparently my carefully constructed habitat is about to be bulldozed by a certain blue-eyed miscreant.

There are no signs of Jay as I’m leaving. His lack of presence is morbidly depressing.

I’m on their driveway when the devil reappears. Cole calls my name as he sticks his head out of his bedroom window. That’s how he knew I was in the house when he tipped the bucket over me, sneaky bastard.

“What?” I shout as he grins at me with that devil-may-care smile.

“How about I give you a ride to school tomorrow? We can begin the beautiful journey that is our new, everlasting friendship.”

“What makes you think I’d even sit in a car with you, let alone go for a twenty-minute drive?”

“Hey, it was just an offer. I know we’ve got a long way to go but it was worth a shot, right? I figure if I begin trying early, you might warm up to the idea eventually.”

“You’re crazy!”

“No, Tessie, but I am fond of the ‘so crazy it just might work approach.’”

The entire conversation consists of us yelling sentences to each other, and it isn’t long before a woman with graying hair comes out of the adjacent house. She’s tugging her robe tighter around herself and yelling at us “filthy teenagers” to shut our traps. Cole disappears from my view and I like to think that the old lady scared him, but in a minute or two he’s downstairs and out the door, slightly breathless as though he ran. He walks toward me and I feel the need to disappear beneath his mammoth hoodie.

“Now that we have that sorted out,” he runs a hand through his hair as though nervous, “I’d like to be friends. What I just did up there with the water? It was stupid. So how about we try another route?”  
He extends his hand toward me and I look at it like it’s been infected by zombies, contagious zombies. He must have seen the look on my face, as he lets out a laugh.

“I don’t have any life-threatening diseases, Tessie. It’s just a handshake.”

“I’m sorry, but given our history, you can see why I’m a little skeptical of this newfound desire for friendship."

He nods and an emotion passes across his face that I can’t decipher. It couldn’t possibly be hurt, right? He withdraws his hand and we stand there awkwardly. I refuse to feel bad about what I’ve just done and so turn around and begin walking home.

“See you tomorrow, shortcake,” he says to my retreating figure and I wince. One more year of him, just one more year, I could totally get through this. Right?


	4. Chapter Three: Death by Spearmint- I'd Revolutionize the World of Crime

I can honestly say that I’m not the lightest of sleepers. In fact, a crane could scoop out the roof of my house and I’d sleep through it because that’s just how I am. It’s purely genetic. We all cherish sleep a lot more than regular people, and my brother took his love for it the extra mile since all he ever does is sleep; well, get hopelessly drunk and then sleep.

Now, this hereditary love of sleep would explain the amount of hatred I would harbor for any person who wakes me up before I absolutely have to. Anyone and everyone who knows me well enough knows better than to mess with my sleep. You can bully me all you want, you can call me all the names in the world, and you can also so cruelly snatch the love of my life away from me, but you just cannot wake me up when I don’t want to be woken up.

Sadly, one person didn’t get the memo, and the fact that it’s my own mother makes it worse.

“Time to wake up honey, we’ve got someone waiting for you at breakfast.”

I do some mental calculations and lift my head from the most comfortable pillow on earth to take a look at the alarm clock that sits on my bedside table. I’m right, I do have fifteen more precious minutes of sleep that are being rather cruelly snatched from me. I don’t care if it’s the president waiting to share oatmeal with me, I would rather sleep. That is exactly what I tell my mom.

However, she refuses to take no for an answer, or leave my room for that matter. Having never been the nurturing sort, Mom hasn’t woken me up for school in a long time, and I think she’s still stuck at a place where I’m six and throwing a tantrum about not wanting to go to school. She rips the covers off me.

“It’s rude to keep guests waiting, Tessa. Please get dressed and come down.”

“My early morning now effectively ruined, I grudgingly get ready and stomp downstairs, ready to chew out the person who has upset my morning routine.

Of course it’s Cole Stone.

“You!” I seethe, having gotten over the shock of seeing him in my dining room pretty quickly. Luckily, Mom is out of earshot and doesn’t hear me be rude to our ‘guest’. He’s casually helping himself to a generous serving of eggs and bacon while I plot ways to make him choke on his coffee.

“What are you doing here?” I hiss as I stride toward him.

“Your dad asked mine if I could drive you to school today. He said he wouldn’t be able to drive you because he had to leave early for work and your mom’s car is stuck at the mechanic’s. Does this ring a bell at all?”

I shake my head. “No, he never mentioned that last night.” How very convenient, well played, Father.

“My dad told me you were waiting for me. Uh, that’s why I’m here bright and early.”

Somehow I find myself believing him, because I know that my dad is capable of doing this. He’s had some strange matchmaking fetish for me and one of the Stone boys, and maybe this is his attempt to set me up with Cole's. He's the one I'm angry with, not Cole, because it looks like Cole's as clueless as I am. Begrudgingly, I let him eat as I head to the kitchen to grab some food for myself, but the weirdness of him being in my house and us being civil to one another never goes away.

***

The thing about my mom is that she never cooks. Any maternal instinct that might tempt her to want to care for her children enough to feed them is long since gone. I know from experience she’s a terrific cook. But somewhere down the line, she stopped being the mom who used to make dinner every night and insist that we all sit together and eat.

Seeing the spread on our table right now, I can’t help but feel jealous as I realize that Mom would cook for Cole and not for our family. It’s stupid, I know. My family’s problems won’t be solved by over casserole. But I need a scapegoat for all the resentment I’m feeling, and it now seems to be directed toward Cole. Cole, who seems to be oblivious to all the tension surrounding him and is plowing through his breakfast like a tractor on crack.

“So Cole, what are your plans for college?”

My mom’s question takes me by surprise since she has shown negligible interest in my future plans. She doesn’t even know what classes I’m taking for senior year or that I’m a straight-A student. For a Chinese mom, she sure is the opposite of the stereotypical Tiger Mother. I sigh internally and try not to drown in self-pity. It makes sense that mom is sucking up to him. He is, after all, the sheriff’s son, and the sheriff is a very important man in the world of small-town politics.

Cole stops inhaling his food and disarms my mom with a charming smile.

“I haven’t actually planned anything. I might not even go to college this year, you know. I’m thinking about taking a year off. Maybe go backpacking through Europe, see the world.”

I snort in disbelief. “Backpacking through Europe? Only people who don’t have the grades to get into college use that excuse.”

My mother gives me an admonishing look and I realize she’s warning me to back off. I pout like a stubborn child and cross my arms over my chest, matching her stare. I’ve told her before that I will not under any circumstances suck up to Cole Stone. There’s nothing on the planet that could make me be nice to the one guy who’s taken it upon himself to make every waking hour of my life difficult. If my mom thinks I’m going to become Cole’s best buddy, then she is obviously delusional.

“Tess, sweetie, about that car you wanted for your birthday . . .” She trails off, on purpose, no doubt, but her words have the desired effect. I freeze, my fork stopping halfway in the air as my mother smirks at me from across the table.

She wouldn’t . . .

All year long I’d been saving up for the most beautiful Range Rover Sport. My dream car is also why I've let myself be driven to school right up until my senior year. It’s not that my parents couldn’t get me a car, but I want the car and so I still get rides to school at eighteen. I practiced driving with my parents’ cars regularly just so that when I finally owned my Range Rover, I wouldn’t let that beauty down. However, in the end my savings had been somewhat meager and my parents stepped in to stop me from sinking into depression. They promised me that I could have the car for my birthday, no strings attached. I’d been floating on cloud nine, dreaming of me and my car cruising down the highway with the wind blowing in my hair and Maroon 5 blasting from the radio . . .

But as the words leave her mouth, the image shatters into thousands of bite-sized pieces because I know where this is going.

“What about my car?” I ask carefully as her smirk widens.

“I was thinking maybe we’d get it next year. You can have Travis’s old one this year since you’re still a little shaky with parking.”

Oh no she didn’t! I could park better then she could, and she had admitted it to my face. I know what she’s doing. She’s blackmailing me into being Cole’s lapdog and threatening me by taking away the one thing she knows I could never live without. I really need that car. When you’re as plagued by self-esteem issues as I am, the last thing you need is being driven to and from school by your father.

I gulp as I realize the predicament I’m in. The only option I have left is to surrender my pride and take this punishment with a pinch of salt. One day I will, parents, I will get back at you.

“Don’t worry, Mommy; I’ll work on my parking.” I smile until my cheeks ache, but the message has been delivered. When decoded my words meant this: “You win, Mother, I won’t be bringing my wrath down upon Cole, at least not today.”

“Wonderful, dear,” she replies cheerfully, and turns back to her breakfast.

***

“So I think we need to tell our parents that we’re not interested in spending time with one another. I think you should be the one to do it though, since I don’t think my parents understand most of what I say. There's clearly a communication gap," I tell him, having practiced this speech over and over again in my head during our drive. I don't want to be excessively rude to him but I also need to get this point across.

“I thought we agreed to be friends last night.” Cole pouts but keeps his eyes on the road. I study his profile and notice the stiffness of his jaw, and the tightness around his mouth. Wait, did I just hurt his feelings again? I squeeze my eyes shut and push the thought aside. I did not agree to be his friend and never would.

“We did not agree on anything last night, and I think it’s best if we went our separate ways, don’t you think? The past is the past, I’ll do my thing and you do yours. This does not need to get ugly.” I try to reason with him because if I’m stuck in an enclosed space with Cole Stone and cannot get out without risking death, then I might as well use it to my advantage. Stupidly enough, I’d convinced myself that he wouldn’t pull one of his stunts on me while we’re driving, but given how his face falls as I keep talking, I realize that I might be proven wrong. Why is he reacting this way?

“Do you really think it’s that big of an impossibility? Us being friends?” His seriousness is unexpected and I don't know how to answer him. 

“I . . . I . . . just think it would be best if we went our separate ways.”

“But what if . . . Christ, Tessie, what if I want to try to make it right this time around?”

Noting the look of absolute shock on my face, he retreats from saying more things that are making the foundations of my world shake. “Okay then, before we give you a panic attack bright and early this morning, let’s leave this open for discussion, okay?

I don’t think I respond.

“Did they put you through a brain transplant at military school?”

“You and that imagination of yours, shortcake. I’m perfectly capable of being nice.” He chuckles.

I bet my imagination can think of a thousand different ways to kill him using that pack of gum lying atop the dashboard. Whoever this version of Cole is, I'm even more unsure of how to deal with him than I was with the evil version of him. The sooner I get rid of him, the better it is for my sanity. Death by spearmint-I'd revolutionize the world of crime. They should give me my own episode of _Criminal Minds._

When we finally make it to the parking lot of ALHS, I feel like I’m a war veteran; shell-shocked is the right phrase to describe my current state of mind. Unaffected by the fact that I almost had a panic attack, Cole eases his Volvo between two parking spaces. My legs feel wobbly as I throw myself out of the car, far away from Lucifer. In my haste to get away from him, I stumble into a cheerleader and prepare myself for an earful.

But it never comes.

Said cheerleader is nearly drooling as she watches Cole. Not only her; as I look around, everyone seems to be frozen on the spot and staring at him.

Figures. Cole’s return is a pretty big deal. He’s this unforgettable legend to the entire student population. At ALHS, he’s hero-worshipped for the many pranks he’s pulled throughout the years. Everyone knows who he is, even though he’s been gone for three years, and it seems like his celebrity status hasn’t diminished even a little bit.

Joy.

He purposely embellishes his exit out of the car. Why can’t he do what normal people do and get out without the dramatic flair? It’s like watching a really bad episode of Baywatch as he swings one leg out and then the other in slow motion. When His Highness finally gets his sorry ass out of the car, he takes off his leather jacket and swings it around his shoulder. He makes a big show of taking off his aviators and inserting them in the back pocket of his jeans. Then he stretches and pretends to yawn so that his taut muscles stretch and ripple as his shirt does nothing to hide how fit he really is.

I can practically hear each and every member of the female population sigh in barely concealed lust as he runs a hand through his hair. It makes it look even better, dang it. He then does the unthinkable and winks at me, and I’m sure that everyone caught the little moment.

I narrow my eyes at him and scowl. “Who do you think you are? David Hasselhoff?”

This wipes the smirk right off his face and I mentally congratulate myself for the little victory.

“Please—if the ladies saw this,” he points toward his body, “half naked, all wet and glistening, running on the beach, they wouldn't know what to do with themselves," he says cockily, and I nod in agreement, surprising him.

"You're right; it'd be a hard choice between scooping out their own eyes with a melon-baller or taking rat poison."

“With that I march right past him knowing that every set of eyes is on me and that sooner or later this will so come back to bite me in the butt.  
***

Meghna is nearly hysterical in homeroom. I can tell she’s just itching to know if I really did show up with Cole and if I did indeed, how come I’m still in one piece. It is the ideal class to spill my guts since Miss Sanchez’s head currently rests on her desk and drool is visibly escaping from her mouth. I shudder at the sight and focus my attention on my best friend, who is practically whimpering with the need to know what is going on. I also have Beth, who’s pretending to not listen in on our conversation, but I know she’s interested. She’s been stuck on the same page of her assigned reading book for the past fifteen minutes and it’s not because she’s suddenly forgotten how to read.

I tell them everything, starting from how I was forced to go to the Stone residence the previous night to how Cole became my ride to school this morning and by the time I finish venting, Meghna's eyes have turned the size of watermelons as she gapes at me. Beth simply looks amused.

"Doomed, Tessa, you're doomed," Meghna wails, and I slump in my seat, hitting my head against my desk repeatedly.

"There, there." She pats my head sympathetically and I glare at her. 

“I don’t see what the problem is.” Beth’s gravelly voice interrupts the silence for the first time. I squint in disbelief. She doesn’t think I have a problem? Has listening to all those Led Zeppelin albums finally damaged her brain?

She rolls her eyes as Meghna and I give her incredulous looks. “Look, the way I see it, it’s a win-win situation for you. Now that he’s taken the role of resident bully, Nicole won’t come near you, and Jay will realize that there are other guys who are interested. He might actually grow a pair and be the friend you’ve always wanted him to be.”

I splutter in disbelief as I try to make sense of her logic. The words “guy” and “interested” stand out and seem so alien, especially when applied to me, that I think my friend’s gone for a ride on the cray-cray train.

“Beth, which part of him being Hannibal Lecter do you not get?”

“I get it, trust me, but what I get the most is that this guy likes you, and he showed it the best way he could. He’s obviously trying to make amends and maybe you should let him. So maybe his method isn't the most original, but it's a classic boy maneuver," she states like she's discussing the weather, and Meghna and I exchange looks, both thinking the same thing. "Sane" Beth isn't with us today.

“Yes, it’s a classic boy maneuver for when you’re in kindergarten. If there is even the smallest possibility that he likes me, he wouldn’t torture me like he does,” I explain patiently, like I’m talking to a child with learning problems.

“Think what you want; I know I can’t convince you otherwise.” She shrugs but adds, “I just feel that him being here isn’t necessarily a bad thing.”

For the rest of the day I cannot stop thinking about Cole’s and Beth’s words. For the time being I’m able to tuck them away in a corner of my mind, but I realize that sooner or later, I’ll have to think about them.

***

She, however, couldn’t be more wrong. As the day passes, I realize that people are looking at me with more interest than ever. The last time I was this popular was when I’d been Nicole’s fat sidekick. These people had pushed and prodded until she’d dumped me, so it’s not surprising if I seem somewhat skeptical about what they are up to today.

I stand outside the door of my economics class. It’s a class I have with Jay and Nicole, and I have dreaded attending ever since school started. Nicole does what she can to make it the worst fifty minutes of the day, and I do what I can to protect my poor heart. It feels like someone’s taken a butchering knife to it each time I see Jay and Nicole discreetly or not so discreetly touch each other.

I walk in about five minutes early and the happy couple is already seated at their joint table. We have a partner system in this class and it’s self-evident that I sit alone. Nicole seems to have warned people against changing my status as a social outcast. I try not looking at them as I walk past them to take my seat right at the back, a seat that I hate since I need to have superhuman eyesight to see the whiteboard. But c'est la vie, you do what you gotta do.

“It’s okay, Tessie, I’m sure you’ll grow some boobs when you’re like thirty; no need to stuff your bra,” Nicole snickers.

Ugh, so close! I’d almost escaped her this time. But she’s struck a low blow. She knows that my chest area is a major source of embarrassment for me and yet she chooses to pick on it, especially when Jay’s with her. He must be comparing his curvaceous and voluptuous girlfriend to flat-chested me and thinking how he got the better end of the deal.

“Or she could get fake ones like you did, but she’s not that desperate.”

For a second, my heart soars. I freeze halfway and think that Jay’s finally defending me and that he’s finally seen how rotten his girlfriend is on the inside. Any moment now he’s going to kiss me right in front of her, telling me that I have always been the one for him. I snap my head back so fast that I almost pull a muscle, but to my utter disappointment, Jay sits in his seat squirming and another person has joined in on the discussion about my boobs- fantastic.

Cole leans over Nicole and Jay’s desk and I can see he’s testing Nicole. He wants to know if she has the guts to talk back to him. See, before Cole left, Nicole wasn’t much of a queen bee or even a worker bee. In fact, she was happy being the outcast bee with me. That’s not even the best part; Nicole also had the biggest crush on Cole. I recall all the times we squealed over the Stone brothers and imagined our joint wedding, after which we’d end up being sisters. Though I did point out that her future husband might not let me live to actually wed.

Obviously, things didn’t work out.

Now, it’s priceless seeing her face drop as Cole has so blatantly insulted her. Her mouth flops open and shut like a fish’s. She struggles to come up with the biting remarks she’s used on me all these years. It’s nice to see her be the one being bullied for a change; I almost feel a sense of gratitude toward Cole—almost.

“Back off, man.” Jay comes to the defense of his girlfriend. It’s a little too late, but it still hurts to know that he's got her back and not mine."

“Then tell your girlfriend to stop being a bitch,” he says smoothly, and I swear I see Nicole’s face reddening in embarrassment.

“Cole,” Jay warns, his hands balling up into fists and his jaw clenching.

“Jay Jay,” he retorts, clearly enjoying the whole ordeal.

Before either of them can go any further, the bell rings and the teacher, balding Mr. Spruce, walks in clutching his briefcase. Everyone settles into their seats including me. Imagine my surprise when the chair next to me gets pulled up for the first time ever and Cole Stone, of all people, sits down next to me.

He makes nothing of it as I openly stare at him. “You can’t sit here!” I exclaim, yet try to keep my voice down as Mr. Spruce starts taking roll call.

“If it won’t kill me or endanger my sex drive in any way, then of course I can.”

I wrinkle my nose at his indecency and he chuckles at my discomfort.

“No, you seriously can’t. No one sits here!"

“Do you have some sort of contagious disease?”

“No!” I say, looking around and making sure that no one’s listening in on our conversation, especially not the people sitting two tables in front of us.

“Do you have a foot fetish?”

“Ew no.”

“Do you plan on using whatever information you can get from me in this class and use your mob connections to put a price on my head?”

I almost laugh at this one but hold it in and shake my head.

“Then I can sit here. I want to sit here.”

“You’ll end up at the bottom of the proverbial food chain, then—your call,” I say dryly, flipping my textbook open and turning to the chapter we are currently studying. I can feel Cole’s gaze burning the side of my head but I cannot look him in the eyes just yet. I might have said the words with nonchalance, but it does hurt that just by association with me, a person would be labeled a loser for eternity. It feels like I’m some sort of disease-carrying rodent that you should warn the public to run from.

“Don’t let her get to you, Tessie,” he says softly, so softly that I cannot believe that the words have come out of his mouth. It goes against his very nature to be nice to me. Since when does Cole Stone behave like an actual human being around me?

“It’s not exactly easy to do that,” I say, avoiding eye contact, but I hear him sigh and drop his head on the table.

“You let her walk all over you, but that’s got to stop.” He sounds determined and I whirl my head around to look at him. There’s genuine concern in his eyes, and my mind involuntarily goes back to what Beth said earlier this morning—did Cole like me? Or is he just trying to get rid of his guilt for the way he’d treated me all those years? If that’s the case, I can’t let myself be a charity case and so I confront him.

Even thinking about it is absurd and I shake the thoughts out of my head. “Why do you care? How are you any different from her?” I ask, and I see something akin to pain flash in his eyes, but just for a second. He shrugs before flashing me his devil-may-care smile.

“Let’s just say I don’t like sharing. You’re my Tessie and I feel like the two of us are secure enough in this relationship without needing an amateur like Bishop. Wouldn’t you agree?”

I roll my eyes and realize that he could never be serious for longer than a nanosecond. Who am I kidding, there's no way that his feelings for me go deeper than his preference to constantly pop up in my life, whether I want him to or not. Still, there's lingering gratitude toward him inside of me because it's been a long time since I had someone stand up for me- but I would never let him see that.

“I feel so lucky to have you as my personal bully.”

“The pleasure is all mine.” He winks and opens his own textbook.

Sometimes I really do wish I could see what it is that’s going on inside that head of his. But then I think better of it as I realize it probably holds more conniving thoughts about making my life a living hell. Cole Stone’s head is dangerous territory, but I have an inkling that I’m about to become Dora the Explorer sooner rather than later.


	5. Chapter Four: In the Name of Your Pea-Sized Balls, I say Unhand Me!

Let’s get one thing very clear, especially now that the plague called Cole Stone is fast spreading through my life. I am not an attention seeker, I never was and never will be an attention seeker. I’m the kind of girl who likes to blend into the background so much so that a chameleon would be jealous of my mad skills. See, my ability to socialize is something way past terrible. I’m downright pathetic when it comes to trying to talk to someone new. Evidence of my lack of prowess in this particular department is that I only had one friend from the age of five till the age of fifteen. When she ditched me for a higher calling, it took me months to find a new friend—Meghna. In fact, I have to hand it to the girl for tolerating my one-word stuttered responses and the awkwardness that comes as naturally as breathing to me.

The purpose of this explanation is to highlight how frustrating it has become for me to be constantly watched. The eyes follow me everywhere I go, be it my classes, the cafeteria, the bathroom. The beady little suckers even followed me to my shift at Rusty's Diner., It is unnerving to say the least, and most of the time I tolerate this unwarranted attention by telling myself that they are doing what humans are prone to do, and that's not minding their own business. Had I been in their place, maybe I too would've started stalking the girl who seems to be constantly accompanied by the resident bad boy himself.

***

“We’re sitting at a table in the cafeteria and once again, miraculously, the table isn’t the one nearest to the overflowing trashcans. Cole, of all people, threatened a group of soccer players who had scattered comically fast from their designated table. Now once again the feeling of being watched is growing to a point where it’s making me paranoid. It’s eerily similar to the dream where you’re naked in school.

“You’re going to eat that?” Cole asks as he eyes my pizza slice, which I gladly push toward him.

Cole’s sitting beside me whereas Meghna and Beth are sitting opposite both of us. Meghna’s tray remains untouched as she ogles Cole. Apparently she’s never been in such close proximity to, as she calls him, “The Cole Stone,” and it’s robbed her of her appetite. Beth remains much more composed about the situation and is munching away on her apple with only a hint of amusement on her face.

At some point during all of this I will have a panic attack about how absurd this scene is, but I’ll save it for later.

“So do you ladies have plans for the weekend?” Cole asks. It’s an innocent question, but I can sense it's more to do with ending the uncomfortable, hostile (mostly from me) silence. He's been sitting with the three of us for a week now, much to the chagrin of the popular crowd, especially Nicole. Her horrific glares are getting harder to ignore. I get it—she’s mad. I’ve somehow gotten myself under the protection of the one bully who could out-mean her and she’s probably suffering from going cold turkey from her addiction. It’s been a whole week since she’s targeted me. Call it pessimistic but I can’t help but feel a little frightened, thinking of the quietness on Nicole’s front as the calm before the thunderstorm that is my former best friend.

“We might go to the mall or something,” I tell him, then mentally slap myself knowing that I’ve given away my possible location over the weekend. I’d been hoping that the girls and I could go out and do something fun without Cole shadowing us. Now that seems somehow impossible.

“On a Saturday night? Does the mall stay open that late?” He raises an eyebrow and I shrug.

“It’s not like we have a lot of options. We’re not exactly swamped with party invites.” I hope that didn’t sound as mournful to him as it did to me. He studies me for a while and before I know what he’s doing, he stands up on his seat, turns around, and hollers at someone called Jared across the cafeteria.

“Hey man, you still up for the party on Saturday?”

The person called Jared is sitting at Nicole’s table. He’s probably a jock since he’s wearing the jersey. He yells yes and Cole tells him that he’s in.

“Awesome.” Jared grins and everyone at his table is immediately buzzing, discussing the all-important issue. Who’s going to bring the booze?

Cole sits back down on his seat and grins at me. “That guy’s been begging me all week to throw a welcome home party. I didn’t want one since you know he’s a tool but you’re welcome.”

I stare at him, trying to comprehend what it is that he’s trying to imply. Why would I be thanking him? So someone’s throwing a party for him, big whoop. Why should it matter to me? Always the smarter one, Meghna squeals in delight and jumps in her seat. That’s before she starts clapping her hands like a two-year-old on a sugar rush.

“What?” I look between the two of them wondering what it is that I’m missing.

“We now have plans for the weekend.”

I scowl and turn in my seat so that I’m facing him.

“Who says I’ll go?" I say determinedly.

He chuckles. “It would be the polite thing to do, besides, it’ll be fun.” I shake my head furiously. “No! I will not, I cannot, and frankly, I should not for the sake of my own well-being go to this party.”

He turns in confusion toward Meghna since I’m still mumbling incoherently under my breath, having gone into shock because of what he’s just asked me today.

“What’s with her?” he asks Meghna, like I’m not even there.

Meghna is caught off guard, not expecting Cole to directly address her. Her SAT vocabulary flies out the window and she’s stuttering through random phrases as she tries to piece together an actual sentence. I call it being Stoned, with a capital S, of course.

“I-She . . . her . . . I mean that . . .”

Beth snorts and takes off her earphones. “What she’s trying to so eloquently say is that we’re social pariahs. If Nicole sees us at a party, she’ll go nuclear. Honestly, I don’t give a shit about her royal bitchness; these two are too scared to actually face her.”

Cole looks impressed at her response as she puts the earphones back in her ears and goes back to ignoring us. Though the impressed look on Cole's face is soon replaced by something I can only classify as anger as he clenches his fists.

“How long has she been doing this?” he asks with barely restrained fury, and I’m taken aback by his reaction. Shouldn’t he be happy that in his absence someone’s been thoughtful enough to continue his legacy?

“It doesn’t matter,” I say, trying to calm him down. We’re starting to attract attention and the unsettling feeling in the pit of my stomach is coming back. I really wish more than ever to be someone, anyone, else, even a child named North West. However, it seems like Cole’s piercing eyes are holding me captive. They keep me rooted to the spot as they burn so fiercely into mine. He’s searching for answers I’m not sure he even wants to know.

“How long?” he repeats and this time he makes it clear that I’m supposed to give him an answer. I slump in my seat and avoid looking at him. What’s he going to do when he finds out that my life is actually a lot worse than it was when he was here? Will he pity me? Will he feel even more guilty for relentlessly bullying me throughout my childhood until the age of fifteen? For some reason I don’t want that. He's always going out of his way to insert himself into my life due to some unfathomable desire to make things right. I'm not his pet project and I don't want to give him more fix. My life, the way it is right now, isn't the best, but I don't think I could deal with him turning it all upside down.

“Like I said, it doesn’t matter; I’m handling it,” I say, aware that my best friends are watching me intently.

“Oh you are?” he says mockingly. “Because from what I’ve been seeing for a whole week, your idea of handling is letting her stomp all over you with her giant-ass feet.”

I burst into giggles at the last line, surprising everyone. “She does have huge feet, doesn’t she?”

Cole groans at my obvious changing of the topic but he can’t help but laugh.

“I saw her toes once up close and they’re freakishly long,” Meghna adds, finally finding the courage to speak up. Cole grins at her and she beams with pride knowing that she’s made Cole Stone laugh.

“This doesn’t mean that I’ve forgotten what this conversation is about,” he says seriously, and we look at him like he’s going to start questioning us about Nicole again, but then his face breaks into the most gorgeous of smiles as he says, “I honestly think it’s a good idea that the three of you go to this party with me. You can’t keep letting Nicole get away with this. We’ll all go, we’ll have fun and there’s nothing that anyone can do about it."

“Should I be constantly wary and suspicious of his motives? Yes, I should, but sadly that just joins a long list of things that dabble between the “should” and “could.” As I listen to him, I begin to think of all the ways I’ve let Nicole dictate my life and choices. My friends and I have no social life but how much of that is because I’m too afraid to face Nicole? Maybe a lot of it, and as I take in my best friends’ excited faces, I find myself giving in.

“Fine, I’ll go.”

***

Cole drives me home like he’s been doing all week. My father and his car are conveniently missing when I need a ride, and so Cole and I have become reluctant carpool buddies. By now I’m tired of waiting for him to strike. Ever since he’s come back, he hasn’t done any serious damage and I’m tempted to stop being on my guard so much.

He parks the car in the driveway, which I’m not expecting. Usually he just drops me off and leaves, yet today as he kills the engine I realize that he’s planning something else.

“So I was thinking,” he begins as he notices me looking at him pointedly, "since we're spending all this time together..."

“Involuntarily,” I mumble under my breath, but of course he catches it.

“Right.” He grips the steering wheel tightly. “I know I’m still not your favorite person and odds are that I never will be, but what about a peace offering? How about I make you lunch and we talk?”

The word ‘talk’ sounds ominous and I fear for what’s to come, but right on cue my stomach growls. The sound is especially loud in the confines of the car and the smug idiot hears it. My cheeks redden with embarrassment but the idea of a home-cooked meal sounds heavenly. I don’t get to have a lot of those. I would therefore like to clarify that I invited the devil into my home because of food.

He gets out of the car and I follow him.

“So what is it that you want to talk about?”

The back of his head shakes slightly, and I would bet my right hand that he’s smirking. He knows that the conversation looming in front of me is enough to send me running for the hills. I avoid heart-to-hearts and confrontations like it’s my day job.

He pauses on the porch and turns around.

“Relax, shortcake. I’m not suddenly going to declare my undying love and devotion toward you. If we’re going to be friends, I thought it’d be nice if we spent a little more time together, actually talking and not arguing.”

“I didn’t think you were capable of that kind of emotional maturity.”

“Usually I’m not but hey, I’m willing to give it the good old college try if you are.”

“And why would I want to do that? Try with you, I mean.”

“When life gives you lemons and all that jazz, shortcake.” He chuckles. “The thing is, you’re stuck here with me for at least a year. You could either choose to ignore me or we could try and build something great. I vote for the latter.”

I’m still thinking about his words when he unlocks the door to my house. Wait, it is MY house. “Why do you have a key?” I ask, because there is no possible reason for him to have an all-access pass to my living space.

Unless, of course . . .

“Your mom gave me one the other day.” He grins. “She told me to make myself right at home."

"Excuse me?" My voice is so high pitched it hurts my own ears.

“Well, she said you have a tendency to forget your keys, and since both your dad and her might not be home to let you in, I was entrusted with the responsibility. I take it you’re not so happy about that?”  
That is most definitely an understatement, but worse! Oh God, my parents were Cole Stone fangirls!

***

After Cole makes us both lunch, he takes to lounging around in my room, taking up all the space on my bed due to his tall frame. I sulk in a corner trying to do my homework, still unsure of how to deal with his constant presence. He fiddles around with his phone, no doubt arranging his next tryst. I cannot fathom why he’s still around, but I’m wary of asking him that. Lately his answers have left me feeling stumped, unsure of what is going on with us, so I let things be.

“Hey Tessie?” he asks and I look up from my notebook to find him leaning on his elbow and staring at me. It’s comical watching someone as tall as him on my bed with its floral bedspread and my Build-A-Bear collection. His feet dangle off the end when he stretches- I'm worried, or rather hope, that he might fall face-first on the floor.

“Yes?” I say, pretending to look annoyed.

“Would you mind if I asked you something?”

“You’ve never really cared about what I thought before. Why are you asking now?”

He doesn’t answer me immediately and the fact that it takes him so long to make his point has me on my guard. I’m sure that I won’t like whatever it is that he’s going to say to me.

“What is it? You can’t just say that and then not even ask me your question.”

“Look, this might totally not be my place. Actually, I’m pretty sure I’m way out of line asking you this but . . . is there a reason why you barely touch your meals?”

His question takes time to have the right effect. I start off by becoming confused then shocked and then scared. He couldn’t possibly know, could he? He’s only been here for a week, not nearly enough time to pick up on my eating pattern. However, with the seriousness on his face, I realize that I’m in deep trouble.

“What do you mean?” My voice comes out shaky and I hate it because it goes against my plan of keeping him at bay regarding the issue.

“Look, just tell me if I’m imagining things,” his voice trembles a little before continuing, “but even at school you pick at your food. Whenever I eat with your family, you take a bite or two and then leave thinking that your parents don’t notice. We’ve been back from school for two hours and you didn’t even eat half of what I made. Please tell me that I’m wrong, that I’m seeing something that’s not there. I . . . I know it’s not my place to bring this up, but Tessa, I’m just worried.”  
My heart’s beating faster than normal as I listen to him and think how accurate his assessment is. I realize that he’s caught me when no one else has.

“Maybe it’s because you repulse me and I can’t stomach food when you’re around,” I bite back, my words coming out defensive.

He doesn’t miss a beat.

“I’m not joking, Tessa. If there really is a problem then I want you to be able to talk about it, to someone you trust if not me. I don’t know what to do here, maybe I’m just making a huge idiot of myself, but I want you know that I care and that if you ever need someone to talk to..."

“This kind of attention and concern are foreign to me and have been for so long. No one has really talked to me like they care, especially when it came to taking care of my health. My parents are too busy trying to deal with their messed-up relationship and my brother, well, he’s . . . my brother.

“Mind your own business,” I say scathingly, wondering where all my witty comebacks were vacationing or where they hide whenever Cole’s around.

“You are my business, Tessie.” He tries to joke about it but there’s something haunting about the expression on his face. Why? Why does he suddenly care so much about me now? I’m a hair’s breadth away from having a full-blown temper tantrum and it’s all because I’ve been spending so much time with Cole. He’s this incredibly frustrating person who’s more cryptic and confusing than any Nicki Minaj song I’ve heard to date. It’s like he’s exposed the rawest, most vulnerable part of me and put it on public display. I’m unsure of where to go from here. He knows, he knows my weakness but rather than using that weakness to make me feel worse about myself, he’s being surprisingly supportive.

“How about we come to a mutual agreement to talk about this on a day when I’m ready, and you’ve not literally come at me with it out of nowhere?”

“Oh, okay.” He looks surprised. “Will you be willing to do that then? Talk?”

“I might as well, since you’ve somehow made it your job to worm yourself into every possible area of my life.”

I grunt in exasperation but really I’d rather just talk to him, someone who is more a stranger to me than my friends or family.

“You might want to tone down the grunts, Venus, or your brother might think we’re playing the kinky kind of tennis.” He wiggles his eyebrows and I give up any hope of trying to have a decent conversation with him since he’s dirtier than the underside of Travis’s bed.

***

On Friday I’m taking out some books from my locker when I feel a presence behind me. Seeing as how Beth and Meghna are both in their Home-Ec class, there could only be one person who’d come stalking me. Hello, Stalker Stone.

“Go away, Cole,” I say as I scrape off a piece of gum someone, probably Nicole’s minion, has stuck outside my locker.

“Uh, it’s not Cole.”

I whirl around fast enough to cramp my neck but it doesn’t matter, not when it comes to Jay. He’s standing before me looking somewhat hurt yet adorable at the same time. He’s wearing his baseball jersey and the deep red in it makes him look really good. His mesmerizing eyes are a swirl of color as they shift from blue to green, and I struggle to stop a sigh from escaping.

“Jay,” I exclaim as I shoot him an apologetic smile. I wave my hand, dismissing the mistake, “I’m sorry, I thought you were . . .”

“Cole. I get it,” he says through a clenched jaw, which surprises me. He’s never been like this around me. Usually whenever Nicole’s far, far away he’s super nice and friendly to me. I wonder what’s wrong with him. Maybe that moron he calls his stepbrother did something yet again.

“What’s wrong?” He seems to have not heard me the first time so I repeat myself. “Jay? What’s wrong?”

He shakes his head and it seems like he’s finally remembered what he came to me for. “I’ve heard you’re coming to Jared’s party tomorrow.” He doesn’t sound pleased and I try to remember if I know any Jared. Then like a lightbulb switching on inside my head I realize that he’s the jock who’s throwing the party for Cole. The party I’m reluctantly coming to terms with attending.

“I guess I am,” I say hesitantly and I see the disapproval clearly on his face.

“Why, Tessa? You’ve never come to any party before—why now?” he asks sourly, and I recoil in hurt. Barely restraining myself from shouting that it’s because of his psychotic girlfriend, I take a deep, calming breath and remind myself that this is Jay. He’s probably only doing this out of concern. Of course it might appear strange to him that a girl like me would go to a party, and he’s just checking if something’s off. I want to tell him about how my best friends are actually looking forward to going, about how my baby Range Rover is in danger, but we’re not exactly close; it would be a little awkward to rant in front of him. God forbid he starts thinking of me as a bigger lunatic than I already am.

“I don’t know. I feel like I’m missing out on an essential part of the high school experience," is what I tell him instead.

He frowns at me for a second and I know it’s because he wasn’t expecting me to sound so sarcastic. It’s partially my fault since every time Jay tries talking to me, I end up sounding like my mom when she accidentally took too many painkillers after she bruised her ribs. Suffice it to say I sound like a flower-crown-wearing hippie.

“Is Cole forcing you to go?”

“No!” I laugh nervously and tug at the sleeves of my sweater. When I look up again, Jay’s still there looking extremely unconvinced.

“I’m going to this party because I want to. There’s only so much homework you can do on Saturday night.”

There’s a sad smile on his face as I say this and . . . guilt? I try understanding why he’s looking so forlorn at my pathetic social life but come up empty.

He opens his mouth to say something but stops as he looks at something in his line of vision. Before I can see what or who it is that’s made him quiet, an arm is slung across my shoulders and I’m pulled to a very well-muscled side of a body.

“There you are, Tessie, I’ve been looking for you everywhere," Cole says as he ruffles my hair. I elbow him and pull away, fixing the mess he's made of my hair. He pretends to wipe away a tear and coos, "Ah shortcake, always so affectionate." He returns his arm to around my shoulder.

I will not think about the fact that the weight of it around me actually feels good.

“Let go of me, you oaf!” I struggle in his grasp, refusing to be assaulted by his scent and to feel any kind of attraction to him. He’s only doing this to annoy Jay, and while I’m enjoying the look of utter shock on Jay’s face, I think we’re taking it a bit too far.

“In the name of your pea-sized balls, I say unhand me!” I say and stomp on his foot. He gasps and pulls away but I suspect my feeble attempt at hitting him has made little difference.

“I’ll let you know that my balls are not pea sized!”

“Whatever makes you sleep at night.” I glare at him but before he lunges at me, someone clears their throat. I then feel the overwhelming urge to hit my head against my locker. Jay’s standing there with his nostrils flaring and fists clenched as he glares at the two of us. I’ve never seen him so angry and I can’t figure out why he’s reacting so intensely.

“Don’t you have a class, Jay Jay?” Cole asks like he’s annoyed about his brother’s presence, and I feel like hitting him again for testing Jay when he’s obviously in a bad mood. I swear this boy brings out my violent streak like nobody's business.

“I do. Actually, Tessa and I have the same one so I was hoping we could walk together.” He offers me a small smile but before I can say yes Cole answers for me.

“No can do. She’s coming with me.”

“I am?”

“She is?” Jay and I ask at the same time and Cole nods at both of us.

“I know you didn’t get to do your homework last night because of me so I got us out of class by charming the principal’s secretary into letting us do stupid volunteer work in the AV room.”

Okay, that’s surprisingly nice for someone who could possibly be part demon. It’s true though—he kept annoying me last night, refusing to leave my room once he’d dropped me off. I think he mostly felt guilty about opening up a particular can of worms and wanted to make sure I wasn’t too emotionally vulnerable. A part of me, the part that didn’t want to be alone following a revelation like that, was glad for his company at the time. My father had been downstairs watching the game but I suspect he’d been secretly throwing around confetti because of Cole’s presence.

By the time he’d left I felt so tired that I crashed immediately and woke up only due to the ringing of my alarm for school. I’d been complaining about it at lunch knowing that my history teacher would no doubt give me a detention for the assignment I hadn’t done. Cole’s just saved me, thank you, baby Jesus!

“You two were together last night?” Jay asks. He sounds so crestfallen that I feel like giving him a hug, but the fear of Nicole keeps me rooted to the spot.

Cole shrugs. “We were, and now we really need to go. We have DVDs to organize and wires to untangle.” He steers me around so that I’m no longer facing his stepbrother and pushes me in the direction of the AV room. I can’t help but turn around and catch one last glimpse of Jay, still standing at the same spot. A familiar tug at my heartstrings occurs and the crush that I’ve had on him since forever rears its ugly head.

“He’s not worth it,” Cole says quietly as he’s now walking beside me. I don’t have it in me to ask questions or deny my feelings for Jay. Everyone knows I like him, right down to the lunch lady. It's not exactly a big secret since I've been pining after him for what seems like eons.

Cole gives my shoulder a little squeeze before he opens his big mouth and so appropriately consoles me.

"Trust you to fall for the uglier brother. I bet he has a smaller pe-"

I slap a hand on his mouth at this point and his voice is muffled by my fingers. "Cole Stone, if you don't stop talking this instance, I'm going to throw up on your overpriced designed shoes."

That certainly shuts him up.


	6. Chapter Five: If You Wanted Me To Play Sexy Doctor You Could've Just Asked

Saturday evening around six o'clock I lie slumped on my bedroom floor with my back pressed against the foot of my bed. My thumbs twitch to type out a text on the cell phone I hold in my hand; however, my brain just isn't cooperating. Like Beth and Megan would ever be stupid enough to believe that I'd contracted Malaria in a space of twenty-fours hours. Last I checked, my town isn't suffering from a mosquito epidemic.

Okay then, malaria definitely needs to be crossed off of the list of possible excuses. I try thinking harder, but for someone with a 4.0 GPA it seems pitiful that I cannot come with the name of anything worthwhile. After I've racked my brain thoroughly I decide to hell with it, and switch on my laptop, going to the holy shrine where all questions come to be answered- Google.

I type in "Most Commonly Contracted Diseases" into the search bar and my page is immediately flooded with an onslaught of information related to STDs. I wrinkle my nose at some of the images I see and turn my face away from the screen in disgust. I quickly skip through the pages that mention STDs, finding it somewhat outrageous that my friends would believe that I've not only managed to lose my virginity in a day but on top of that have also been unlucky enough to actually end up with a disease afterwards. I shudder before carefully studying my other options. I quickly select food poisoning as my favorite and after doing a bit of research I decide that it is highly realistic that no one's going to want me around when I make the big reveal. I could just blame it on something I drank or ate, and it's a serious enough excuse to skip Jared the Jock's party.

Grinning, I take out my phone and write a text to both Megan and Beth explaining how I’m camped out in the bathroom. Adding just enough gross details about my condition, I gleefully begin to press Send. In an afterthought I add that I’ve seen a doctor and he says I’ll be fine by Monday, seeing how I can’t afford to skip school.

Before sending the text I pause and quickly add Cole as a recipient. The last thing I need is for him to butt in and somehow ruin my master plan. I hope that he doesn’t see through my lie and for once in his life leaves me alone.

I snuggle down in my bed, satisfied with what I’ve achieved and decide to take a quick nap. I hardly slept the night before worrying about what I could do to get out of going to the party. Cole doesn’t understand why I can’t go, and my best friends seem to be recovering from partial amnesia. They faked aloofness over my claim that Nicole would turn us into little lamb chops if we dare show our faces at any social gathering, even Stacy Miller’s sobriety party. I remember her threats with extreme clarity and in no way do I wish to incur her wrath.

I'm just about to slip into the most peaceful sleep I've gotten all week when my door bursts open. I know almost immediately that I most certainly won't be napping this evening, and it is a well-known fact that a lack of sleep makes me crank. Whoever is at my door better watch out.

Of course it's him.

"What is wrong with you?" I half yell at Cole, who's standing in my doorway smiling at me.

"I could ask you the same question, Tessie. Aren't you supposed to be dying?"

Oh, right.

He doesn’t give me the opportunity to speak up; instead he walks forward swinging a picnic basket behind him, which causes me to become somewhat anxious.

“See, I got your text and I realized how serious your condition is.” He takes a seat at the foot of my bed. “Obviously I got worried; I mean, food poisoning is nasty business. Lucky Cassandra was around so I went up to her and asked her what I could possibly do to make you feel better.”

I gulp; Cassandra is Jay’s mom and Cole’s stepmother . . . and a doctor.”

"She sends her best wishes, by the way, and suggested that I bring these to you- apparently they work wonders."

I'm too scared to look as he opens the basket and first produces a small jar containing a very disturbing green-colored liquid.

"This, shortcake, is called the mean green juice. It’s good for cleansing the system.” He grins, patting his stomach. I shrink back into my sheets, pulling the comforter around me so tightly that it hides half my face. I cannot let him see the dread and obvious disgust on my face due to that abomination in his hands.

Mean Green? That sounds like a Marvel comics villain. Why would anyone ever drink something that looks so funky?

“Aww, don’t be like that, shortcake. You need to drink this. What will I do with myself if you’re hunched over the toilet all weekend? Let’s not be selfish here—drink up.” He coos like he’s talking to a three-year-old. I scrunch my face in pure revulsion as he pours a good portion of the juice into a glass and brings it near my face.

“Open wide,” he sings and I can feel the bile rise up my throat. The idea of that slimy, bitter liquid going down my throat has me sweating and I am positive that my heart’s palpitating. Before I know it I push the covers aside and jump out of bed.

"Get that away from me!" I say in a shaky voice, still eyeing the glass like its contents might come to life and attack me.

"Well, would you look at that!" Cole slaps his knee in amazement and gives me a mock wide-eyed stare. "You're all better already. See, I told you it would work."

"Cut the crap, Stone! You win- just get that thing away from me," I say sourly, still just a little afraid that he might actually make me drink the damn juice. He holds my gaze for about a minute before bursting out laughing; he rolls over in my bed clutching his stomach as his laughter resonates in my room. He continues doing so for about five minutes until tears are streaming down his face and he’s sort of panting because apparently he’s forgotten that he needs oxygen.

I’m mortified and stand in a corner red-faced. Perhaps faking sickness hasn’t been my brightest idea.

“Oh God, Tessie,” he gasps between another bout of laughter. I glare at him; this is embarrassing enough without him being here to antagonize me.

He’s still laughing five minutes later but I guess he sees how red my face is becoming and his laughter fades. There’s still a hint of a smile at the corner of his mouth but he’s doing his best to keep quiet and that little gesture seems to warm me up on the inside.

Until he opens his big mouth and ruins it all.

“If you wanted me to roleplay Sexy Doctor and his misbehaving patient you could’ve just asked.” He winks and I groan in exasperation, which only leads to his further amusement. He gets up from my bed and walks until we're face-to-face; placing his hands on my shoulders, he whirls me around in the direction of my bathroom and pushes me until we reach the door. 

“I can picture it right now. You could call me McSexy and be my Bambi.”

I cringe at the thought as he continues picking my possible hooker names until I can’t stomach it anymore. “Oh my God, shut up, Cole!”

He grins. “Have I grossed you out enough?” I nod vehemently and he seems pleased. “Good, now go shower—everyone’s waiting for you,” he says as he deposits me in the bathroom.

“I don’t want to go, Cole.” It’s time to play the pity card. I might just add in a dash of tears and it’ll be a home run. No guy, even Cole, could say no to a crying girl.

“Not working with me, Tessie. Use the puppy dog eyes for someone who hasn’t known you your entire life,” he says without even looking at me.

I stomp my foot in fury and whine, “But Cole!”

He blows out a breath and walks toward me again, placing both his hands on my shoulders, looking like he’s ready to give me the pep talk of my life.

"I know this is way out of your comfort zone and I know the idea of being surrounded by a bunch of people who haven't treated you well doesn't sound all that appealing, but I promise you that I won't let anything bad happen, okay? Do this and show everyone out there what the real Tessie is about. Please, don't let Nicole dictate your life, just for today."

There must be something about his words that affects me because I find myself agreeing.

***

Wrapping a towel around myself I peep through the door to see if Cole’s still here. When the search comes up empty I tiptoe back in. Solely for the purpose of this party, I head into the part of my wardrobe that’s filled with the things my mom bought me. I think she had tears in her eyes when she could finally go out and buy me skimpy dresses and bikinis. She went a little overboard and I think it’s because shopping for me is her way of being a good parent. What she lacks in motherly instincts she makes up for in her taste for Stella McCartney. Lots of clothes still have tags on them, seeing how I only use the jeans and some tops. Most of my clothes still come from the same stores as Fatty Tessie’s did, but now they’re just five sizes smaller. I pick out a cropped sleeveless red silk blouse and a pair of high-waisted jeans that fit me like a glove. I finish the outfit with my favorite leather jacket and biker boots. I feel like my outfit needs to scream that I’m not to be messed with and I keep that in mind as I do my makeup, slightly heavier than what I would normally go for. When I’ve done my hair and am ready to go out, I unlock my door and come face-to-face with Cole.

“Would it be inappropriate to tell you that you look hot?” That’s the first thing that leaves his mouth and I think we’re both a little dazed by the comment. My cheeks flood with heat and even he looks a little flushed.

“Maybe, but now that you’ve said it, I guess I should say thank you.”

He nods, still looking a little flustered as he takes in my appearance.

“Well then, now that we’ve got that out of the way, shall we?” I gesture toward the stairs. If I’m going, then I’d rather be done with it sooner than later.

As we head downstairs, I discover that he’s ordered some pizzas for us and my stomach growls in approval. The smell of it fills the living room and I’m instantly drawn toward the cheesy goodness. It warms my heart a little that there's one pizza with extra mushrooms, extra jalapeños and corn, which is just how I like it. The fact that he’s paid attention to little things, like how I like my pizza, is endearing. But I’m afraid that he’s done it more so because of how little I’ve eaten today. He hasn’t approached that topic again, thank god, but it does make me question all the little things he does for me. But of course, I can’t let this moment get too poignant.

“You do realize that you’ve crossed a certain boundary when you start ordering food at my house, right?”

“I’m creepy but not that creepy, shortcake. This is for both of us.” He shrugs but I need to know more; I need to know why he’s so nice to me, why he cares.

“At least let me pay for some of it,” I offer, and am about to reach for my wallet when he shakes his head.

“Think of it as a peace offering. I know this party isn’t how you planned on spending your night, but thank you for giving it a shot anyway.” He shrugs.

I have the urge to ask more questions, the ones that would make sense of this strange new relationship that Cole and I seem to be developing. But of course, the doorbell rings and I open it to have Beth and Megan barge in looking absolutely stunning. Megan goes into a state of absolute shock as she sees Cole, and Beth smirks at us like she’s caught us doing something wrong.

“Well, you certainly got better,” Beth says dryly and once again I feel like hitting my head against a wall for that moment of stupidity.

“It was my mean green.” Cole grins proudly and I nearly snarl at him.

Turning back to my friends, I gush, “You guys look amazing!”

We hardly get the opportunity to dress up so seeing them like this is pretty rare. Megan’s wearing a burgundy sleeveless top with black lace detailing and skinny jeans. Her red hair’s cascading down in thick waves to one side, giving her the old Hollywood look. Beth’s gone the opposite way with her figure-hugging little black dress that rests two inches above her knees. She’s paired it with black leather boots and her frenzied, raven-colored hair is twisted into a sleek ponytail.

“You think?” Megan squeals and twirls in front of my full-length mirror. I can tell she’s excited and I feel really guilty for taking this aspect of high school out of her life. Had she and Beth not been friends with me, they’d be pretty popular since they were both stunning inside and out.

“I agree, and I think the occasion calls for some pizza!” Cole says and gets up to head to the kitchen to get us some plates. “You two look amazing.” He smiles as he leaves and I can practically see them melt, even tough Beth whose breathing falters just a little bit. Megan looks like she’s about to collapse there and then or have a full-blown panic attack. He comes back and literally serves all of us food.

“I’ve got to walk home for a little while, there’s been some kind of family emergency and they need my help. I’ll be right back though.” He winks at me and leaves.

“Oh my God.” Megan plops down on the couch after Cole leaves and stares dreamy-eyed at the ceiling. I can tell she’s swooning and I feel an emotion I can’t quite place. It’s strange seeing her react to Cole like that; it feels like our roles have been reversed ... odd.

“How haven’t you gotten with that guy by now?” Beth sounds incredulous and I can see it from her perspective. She wasn’t around for much of my and Cole’s earlier animosity and it would all seem strange to her that I’m so opposed to giving him a chance.

“Easy—he’s the devil,” I say and she shakes her head.

“He likes you, he really likes you, Tessa,” she tells me with way too much conviction.

I roll my eyes and snort, “We are not having this conversation again.”

“I just can’t believe that you don’t see it. I mean, I know your observation skills need serious help but this is just so obvious.”

I’m about to respond when Megan decides to help me out. “You can’t blame her though, Beth. Everyone saw how Cole was always picking on her and most of the time she ended up crying because of his pranks.”  
I open my mouth to protest that I did not cry all the time!

“That was then; something must have changed, but the way he treats you, it’s hard to think he could ever be mean to you. What he does now are harmless pranks he pulls to get your attention. It’s all the guy can do since most of the time you’re in la-la land thinking about Jay and your two-point-five children.”

“I do not!” I exclaim.

“Oh please,” Megan and Beth say at the same time and I hang my head in shame. I really should stop dreaming about those two-point-five kids and the house with the picket fence. I’d run a successful publishing company and Jay would be a famous baseball player. More importantly, we’d hire Nicole as our nanny after she ends up working behind the counter at KFC after high school.

***

By the time we’ve eaten and I’ve mentally prepared myself for this party, it’s eight o’clock. The house is eerily silent except for the sound of the television coming from the living room. My parents are at a benefit that raises money for Dad’s campaign and Travis is obviously at some random bar getting drunk once again.

Cole’s been gone for about half an hour now and I have a feeling that there is no emergency at home. I think he wanted me to have this time with my friends so that I could calm down.

I don’t know if I’d ever say this to his face but I’m glad that he did that for me. So when he comes back, I try not to look too eager to see him. As he escorts us to his car, he tells me yet again that I look nice.

“Thanks,” I say shyly, and an awkward silence follows until Beth coughs and nudges me with a smug look on her face.

I glare at her and she smirks at me, wiggling her eyebrows. Does she really think that Cole might be interested in me like that? It’s obvious the only reason he’s acting like this is because he’s only ever seen me as Fatty Tessie or the Tessa that never wears any makeup or flattering clothes. He’s just a little surprised and taken aback, feeling out of place. It’s perfectly understandable.

“So should we go?” Beth asks a very flustered-looking Cole. I catch him staring at me and he realizes that I’m watching. He shakes his head a couple of times like he’s getting water out of his ear and gives Beth a thumbs-up. “All systems are go!”

“The three of us give him a confused look and he groans, rubbing his forehead. “I meant let’s go.”

“Oh,” we three say in unison and follow him out to his car. Like the backstabbing friends they are, Megan and Beth take up the entire backseat of the Volvo leaving me with only one choice, shotgun.

Glaring at the two of them I take the seat next to Cole, who’s adjusting the rearview mirror, and he can’t help the narcissistic urge to grin at his image in the mirror. Conceited baboon.

He starts up the car but then looks at me suddenly and I feel conscious of his gaze on me. My hand reaches to my face wondering if I’ve managed to smear my makeup already.

“What?” I ask as he keeps looking.

“Open the glove compartment, will you?” He points toward it and I eye it warily.

“What’s in it? Is it a rat or a spider, because I can deal with those two, but let me warn you, if there’s a cockroach in there, you should say good-bye to your little friend,” I say pointedly.

He rolls his eyes. “While your concern for little Cole overwhelms me with happiness, shortcake, this conversation isn’t about him. Now open the glove compartment, it’s perfectly safe.”

I inhale and exhale slowly, my hand lingering on the clasp of the glove compartment. He wouldn’t do anything potentially life-threatening while he himself is in the car with me, plus he seems to like my friends, so he won’t kill them, either.

Reluctantly I open it and nothing springs at me like I expect, threatening to claw my eyes out.

“There.” Cole leans over and points to a corner of the space inside but all I’m aware of is how close he is.

“What am I looking for exactly?” I ask in confusion and he sighs and leans in further, making me press my body to my seat. Megan pops her head in between the gap of the two seats and looks on excitedly.

“This, come on Tessie, sharpen up.” He pulls out a small black pouch and places it in my hand. I tentatively tug at the drawstrings that opens it, holding my breath.

“It’s not poison ivy in there, Tessa, show us!” Megan squeals.

Hands shaking, I reach in and pull out a long-chain silver necklace with a snowflake pendant. I gasp as I hold it in my palm.

“Whoa, that’s beautiful, put it on,” Beth suggests and, ignoring Cole’s gaze, which is burning a hole in my side, I do so. Immediately I love the dainty piece of jewelry. It’s beautiful and delicate and . . . it’s a gift from Cole?

“Is this for me?” I ask, still averting my eyes. He nods, cheeks slightly flushing. “I just . . . I don’t know; it looks good on you.”

“I, uh, thanks.” I’m aware of how my best friends are watching him with rapt attention. Slipping on the necklace, I turn to the two and they grin deviously.

“Beautiful.” They’re not the ones saying that.

I catch Cole’s eye and blush.

“It looks perfect with her outfit. You’ve got quite the taste, Stone,” Beth says.

“What can I say? I’m good with the ladies.” He winks, and when he notices the color my face is turning, bursts out laughing along with my best friends.

They keep laughing as we drive off to the party and somewhere along the way I fight a smile coming onto my face too as I see Cole chatting with Beth and Megan. He’s so good with them; he’s put Megan at ease and even managed to chip into Beth’s tough exterior. I watch them fondly from the corner of my eye and somehow feel a little proud that Cole could bring happiness to these two.


	7. Chapter Six: My Life’s One Big Spanish Soap Opera, Let’s Call It Ugly Tessie

“Maybe we should slap her?”

“No, Meghna, that only works in the movies,” Beth explains.

“We could cut off the seatbelt?”

“Don’t you dare talk about my baby like that!” Cole scolds her and perhaps it’s because Meghna realizes that she wouldn’t   
be having any bright ideas tonight she shuts up for good.

Then there’s me and the fact that I’ve involuntarily started singing “Call Me Maybe.”

“What is she doing?” Cole asks Beth, and I think he’s looking a little scared.

“Oh this? It’s nothing to be worried about, whenever she gets really nervous or scared she starts singing crappy pop songs.” Beth waves her hand over to me, nearly slapping me in the eye.

“Right.” Cole stretches the word but I can tell he’s still not convinced that I’m completely sane.

I stutter, chanting the chorus over and over again to stop my body from trembling. I clutch my seatbelt tightly, the silver   
clasp digging into my skin as I stare off into the distance. Jared the Jock’s house is enormous and currently packed to capacity. If I’d come here on my own I would’ve run away from the gates after seeing the number of cars, but since I'm being held hostage, I need to do everything that my kidnappers deem appropriate. Running away yelling “I’m not ready, get me out of here!” might not be their most desired way to make an entrance. At first I was foolish enough to think we wouldn’t find a parking spot and Cole, being the moody, sometimes inconsiderate, and almost always stubborn jerk that he is, would get mad and leave the party. Imagine my surprise when he eased the car into a space that had a sign with his name on it.

Now I’m sitting in the car because I froze the second everyone got out. I could try to let my embarrassment over singing Carly Rae Jepsen overrule my fear of being amid large crowds; however, that is not happening. My body’s gone into shutdown mode and I’m glued to my seat with my knees knocking together and my arms shaking due to sheer terror.

“Look, why don’t you girls go inside and I’ll bring her when she’s ready,” Cole says after some time to my friends, who shoot me worried glances. They’re all outside of the car already and standing by my door. I can see that they’re debating whether or not it’s a wise decision to leave me with Cole, especially when I'm in this state, but I give a little nod as a go-ahead. I don't want to spoil this for them.

“Are you sure, Tessa?” Beth asks seriously and there’s concern all over her face. I feel so guilty that I’m ruining the night for her because of a silly panic attack. “I’m fine. I just need a minute—you guys go ahead.”

The fact that I say this sounding like Alvin the Chipmunk doesn’t really go in my favor. They eye me skeptically but it’s Cole who convinces them at last.

“You two look hot, okay? Just go in and have fun. I made you guys come here so she’s my responsibility, okay? I’ll see what I can do.” He winks and this seems to convince them.

When they leave Cole comes by my side again. The car door is open and the slight chill in the air causes goose bumps to rise on my skin. I don’t know how long I can sit like this before freezing to death and sooner or later I’ll have to make a decision because frankly now I’m just feeling stupid.

“Why aren’t you saying something?” I’m still looking straight ahead and not at Cole. From the corner of my eye I can see that he’s got his arms folded across his chest and his eyes are studying me curiously. By this time I expect him to be mocking me or to be laughing at me, but his silence is scarier.

“I’m just checking,” he replies after a while and I furrow my eyebrows, my eyes still avoiding looking at him.

“Checking what?”

“How much you need to let someone in and see the real you.”

I’m just trying to decode his words when I feel a strong pair of arms slip beneath my knees and pick me up. I squeal in surprise, my arms instinctively wrapping around Cole’s neck as he starts to lift me.

“What are you doing?” Before I can stop him, he wraps one arm around my waist and uses his free hand to unhook my seatbelt. Once I’m free from the restraint he picks me up completely and hauls me out of his car.

“Letting myself in,” he says decisively as he holds me in midair, eyes boring into mine. I expect him to break out laughing any second or say something to demean me but it doesn’t come. Instead his eyes hold mine for the longest time and my skin begins to prickle in the strangest way. I can’t place the emotion I feel when he’s looking at me like this, but I realize that I don’t like it and that I don’t want to feel more of it.

“Put me down,” I say, breaking the spell of silence and the eye contact at the same time. Something flickers in his eyes, a foreign emotion of his own before he covers it up with mischief.

“And here I was thinking we’d end this romantic moment with a hot, passionate kiss.” He winks but still doesn’t put me down.

His unashamed flirting makes my skin break out into goosebumps. The fact that I’m actually enjoying his crude attempts to hit on me is evidence enough that I’m not in the right frame of mind.

“Please—I wouldn’t even touch those lips if you were dying and needed CPR.” My response is childish and my voice comes out a little breathy at the lack of space between us. It’s all I’m capable of at the moment. I think Cole pities my flustered state and puts me down. I stumble slightly when my feet touch the ground and Cole’s arm immediately reaches out to steady me, placing a hand at the small of my back.

“Famous last words, Tessie.” He smirks and I elbow him in the side.

“Never happening.”

“Relax Tessie, I’m joking. But would it be so bad for you to want this?” He jokingly gestures toward his body. I’m momentarily distracted because damn it, the man is good looking and he knows it. I can just never let him know that I find him remotely good looking.

“Want you? Of course I do.” I smile sweetly and then grimace at the end of the sentence.

Cole fans his face. “Sexual tension, it’s just getting too much.”

I should lighten up, he’s only joking but something about my own feelings annoys me. I’m so all over the place when it comes to him.

“Do you want me to knee you in the crotch?” I growl and he just shakes his head in amusement. I just don’t understand why he’s being so annoying right now since the way he was in the car with Meghna and Beth made me think that he might have a human side to him after all. I just wish I could tell him to stop using his stupid one-liners on me because it just eats away at me that I want to hear these words, just from someone else. Does this make me a bad person? I hang out with one brother but am in love with the other, and he's in love with my former best friend turned Medusa.

Wow, my life’s one big Spanish soap opera- let’s call it _Ugly Tessie._

“I can’t promise I won’t hit on you anymore, but I’ll stop for the night because we’re here.” He sounds smug and as I end my little internal monologue I realize that I’ve got one foot inside the house and the other’s just resting on the threshold. My eyes widen as I take in the jam-packed space with the music blasting so loud that the glass windows are vibrating. I also see dozens of red Solo cups everywhere, lining the floor, in people’s hands, and on the head of an expensive-looking mermaid statue.

That’s when it sinks in. I’m at a high school party and it’s as cheap and tacky as any party I’ve seen on Jersey Shore. This is awesome!

“I take it you like it?” Cole sounds amused as we walk around, dodging grabby couples. I shudder and realize that what I’ve been missing for most of my life is a bunch of really horny teenagers getting drunk and dry-humping in the middle of the dance floor.

“No, actually, I’m happy that this is as horrible as I’ve always imagined it to be," I beam at him and he looks at me like I've managed to lose yet another brain cell.

“You’re weird, Tessie,” he says simply and I shrug.

“And you’re a pain in my ass. What’s your point?”

I don’t know where the sudden bravery’s coming from. I haven’t even touched the alcohol yet and I still experience this exhilarating rush that makes me want to do headstands and pirouettes at the same time. I blame it on the pulsating music. My foot’s tapping incessantly, and this need to just let go and have fun is surging through me. Consequences be damned, I just want to enjoy myself!

“Hey Tessie?” Cole cocks his head to the side and is watching me with an amused smile on his face.

“Hmm?” I ask distractedly, looking around for a corner I can dissolve in unnoticed and dance my heart out.

“You like this, don’t you?”

I don’t know what gave it away, maybe the big fat grin on my face or the fact that I’ve started swaying my body, but whatever it is, I don’t try to hide it. I nod my head vigorously. “I do. This is sure as heck better than staying in my room and studying.” I grin at him and he grins back.

Uh-oh, my skin’s prickling again.

“Come on, let’s give you a night you’ll never forget.”

Cole grabs my hand and we pass through the crowd. I can sense a lull in the commotion wherever we pass through. People are staring and I’m not surprised that they are. This party is for Cole and it doesn’t make sense for the main attraction to be hanging out with the outcast.

I get past the curious onlookers and the girls whose faces remind me of the time my mom let me use my paints to draw on her face. Yeah, I think what I achieved was far superior. There’s one girl, though, that I don’t want to run into tonight and even the thought of seeing her has me rushing for the door. Nicole will not be too pleased to see me so blatantly disregard her laws, but Queen Bitch can drown in the ocean for all I care tonight.

I see Meghna dancing with someone but I can’t make out who he is since his back is toward me, but he’s tall and has blond, closely cropped hair, and whoever he is, he looks like he’s making Meghna happy. Her cheeks are flushed, her deep brown eyes shining like obsidian, and I can just see her falling for this guy even though she probably just met him.

My mouth waters at the sight of all the junk food, which is placed on a long community table that is obviously rented. My feet gravitate toward all the food like we’re the opposite poles of a magnet. I reach for the bowl of Cheetos, dying to taste the cheesy goodness, but my hand is swatted away before I can get to them.

“Oh no, the first rule of any party is to not eat the food if it’s openly accessible.” Cole warns.

“But I . . .” I whimper at the sight of all the food. “Just one Cheeto, please!”

“You do realize that this bowl has more germs than a communal toilet?”

I scrunch my face in disgust as he begins explaining how different hands have been in the bowl and where those hands could have possibly been.

Let’s just say I’m never eating at a party ever again.

“I got you these, though.” He offers me a bag of gummy worms and I all but jump at them, grabbing the bag right out of his hands and opening them at the speed of light. I pick out all the red ones and eat them greedily. Gummy bears are my weakness- only KitKats exceed the love I have for them. You put a pack of those chewy delights in front of me and I’m as good as gone.

Cole knows this. He used to steal the ones I’d bring to school all the time. It hurt so much. Now he just stands there as I oh so gracefully devour red worms. I feel like I need to act a little ladylike in front of him but right now I’m channeling my inner lumberjack.

Once I’m done devouring the candy, he grabs my hand once more. He takes us to a corner that isn’t as cramped as the rest of the space and the moment I hear the first words leading to “Starships,” I jump in happiness. I feel exhilarated and giddy as the people around me start dancing to the one song I’ve rocked out to in the privacy of my room way too much.

Cole laughs as I begin my routine, one that I have perfected for this very song, and starts dancing with me. I don’t protest when he places his hands on my waist and begins moving at the same pace as me. I’ve always known that he's a good dancer, a quality that sadly Jay doesn't share. I try not to think about him as I place my hands on his shoulders as we both allow the catchy beat to guide our steps, singing along to the song in the most hilarious way possible.

It’s surreal really, an out-of-body experience as I watch our bodies moving in sync and realize that Cole and I are having a good time, no, scratch that, a great time together. We can’t seem to stop laughing as we bring out the crazy, embarrassing moves. He lets go of me only to twirl me around and then press my back into his chest as he wraps his arms around my waist, swaying us to the sound of the music. I feel like I’m all on cloud nine as I dance my heart out with Cole by my side.

The song ends and it takes a few seconds for the next one to start but that is enough for two things to happen almost simultaneously. The first being that I realize that I’m pressed way too tightly against Cole, and our chests are heaving up and down almost at the same rate. My back’s facing him so I can’t see his face but with the way he’s holding me I realize that maybe he’s enjoying this a bit too much.

The second thing, which is by far the more important one, is that in the same instant as I’m practically glued to his brother, I lock gazes with Jay. He’s got Nicole in his arms and she’s facing away from me. I’m eternally grateful to whomever is looking out for me up there for the fact that she can’t see the murderous, almost hurt, look on her boyfriend’s face as he glares at Cole and me.

I let go of Cole immediately, letting my arms fall to the side and struggling out of his grasp. He realizes this and releases me. I can feel his presence behind me and I’m sure he sees what I see, which is a very angry Jason Stone.

I don’t understand why he’s looking at me like this or what I could’ve done to make him so mad. He’s been distant ever since Cole started sitting by me in our economics class and I can’t help but think that he doesn’t like the fact that I’m spending time with his brother.

Nicole probably realizes the change in her boyfriend’s mood and lifts her head from his chest. She turns around to see the source of his displeasure and when her eyes land on me I pretty much want to be buried six feet under already.

I see her grinding her teeth and unleashing the full wrath of her terrorizing gaze on me. There’s so much hatred in her eyes that I can feel it seep through my skin and make me feel nauseous. This is not going to end well and I know it. Her eyes practically turn into slits as Cole places a hand on my shoulder and while he’s probably doing this to comfort me, it’s the last thing I need in this situation. I do not need to show Nicole that the guy she crushed on for years is by my side.

“We should go,” I say shakily, still not removing my eyes from where Jay and Nicole stand, both now looking at us like they wished we’d vanish with a poof.

“It’s their problem, not ours; we don’t need to go.”

“Cole, you don’t understand. When Nicole gets angry she . . .”

“Don’t worry about her. I told you I’ll fix it, please trust me.”

I’m about to ask him what he means by fixing it but I freeze in my spot as a sly gleam glitters purposefully in Nicole’s eyes. This is when she’s going to do something that will make me regret ever coming here. She turns in Jay's arms and grabs both sides of his face, and before either he can react or I can pull her off him by her hair, she attacks his lips with hers and kisses him so roughly that it looks almost painful. Although Jay might not be in so much pain, seeing as how he wraps his arms around her and begins kissing her back with equally matched urgency. My heart feels like a freight train’s running over it again and again and again. Tears, which I always try so hard to keep at bay, sting my eyes and a vicious wave of nausea passes over me, making me want to throw up on the spot.

They don’t come up for air and I’m pretty sure they’ve started grinding against each other but all I can do is watch, watch as my heart is ripped out of my chest and stomped on by Nicole’s size-eleven feet.

“Tessa . . .” I almost forgot that Cole’s been standing there the entire time and I can’t face him, I can’t let him see me like this weak, pathetic girl who pines over his stepbrother. If I do then he might start treating me like he used to treat Fatty Tessie, the weak and vulnerable, unconfident blubbering idiot of a girl he left behind.

I push past him and past all the people dancing, laughing, and having fun in the vast room. I don’t see Megan or Beth as I run and I am grateful. The last thing I need to do is wreck their night. Once I’m in the clear I head down a long, winding hallway trying to find some peace and quiet. As if having my wish fulfilled, a guy stumbles out of a room that could only be the bathroom. I pinch my nose and enter hesitantly; when I don’t see any puke or anything too disturbing I allow myself to breathe and close the door behind me. Once all alone I slump against the cool wall of the tub and draw my knees up to my chest.

How could I believe that I could make it through this night unscathed? Nicole always gets what she wants, and when you get in her way she burns you. It’s as simple as that. Seeing her kiss Jay was so painful that the intensity of the hurt I felt in that very moment takes me by surprise. The two have been going steady for three years now; I’d accepted it and lived with it, so why did tonight make such a difference?

Because you want to be the one to kiss him like that, the voice in the back of my mind says. I rest my head on my knees waiting for the overwhelming need to be sick to pass. If all goes well, I’m never going to another party ever again—it’s just not worth it. Yet when I remember dancing with Cole I ache for the chance to be able to do it all over again, to be free and not imprisoned by Nicole. Is that too much to ask?

I’m pondering this very question when the door bursts open and I hit my head against the tub due to the fact that I jump in fright. My heartbeat goes into overdrive as I take in the intruder, and now my skin crawls once again, but for the worst of reasons.

There’s a guy wearing a white muscle T-shirt that emphasizes his burly muscles and wide shoulders; he’s tall, like six two, and bulky in a way only gym rats are. His hair is a dirty blond mess and when I notice his glazed-over eyes, my heart drops to the pit of my stomach. He’s drunk. I’m alone with him in a bathroom and he’s drunk, oh God.

I press myself further into a corner as he closes the door behind him and sneers at me. I don’t know why I feel so immobile and helpless. I know that I should probably make a run for it, scream, do anything to get out of here, but I feel paralyzed and that’s not the greatest thing to happen in a situation like this.

“Hey, blondie,” he slurs and approaches me. The bathroom is small and its grandeur compared to the rest of the house is quite lacking. It takes him all but a minute to come and tower over me. I shake, still pressed tightly in my corner.

“Aww, have you been crying?” he coos and uses his rough, slimy hands to touch my face; he kneels down so that our faces are level and catches a tear on his thumb, which he puts into his mouth and licks in a sickening way. I push his arm away and he laughs at my feeble attempt.

“Don’t touch me!” I squeak and it sounds weak and pathetic to my own ears. He makes nothing of my protests as he grabs me by the arm and pulls me flush against his hard chest. He pulls us both up so that we’re standing. I feel dirty and sick; to me he reeks of beer and I cover my mouth with my hand to stop myself from puking on him.

“I saw you dancing with Stone.” His voice makes the hair on the back of my neck stand up; his hand travels up from my hips slowly to my neck as he feels me up. Suddenly I feel violated beyond measure and having all this skin on display has me begging for comfy sweatshirts.

“You looked sexy. Why don’t you show me the moves you’ve got?” I squeeze my eyes shut as he places his lips at the hollow beneath my throat and licks it.

I push and writhe in his grasp but he grabs my wrists and slams me against the bathroom wall. My head starts pounding immediately from the force and I know that there’s going be a bump forming already.

“Please don’t hurt me.” I squeeze my eyes shut knowing full well that I’ll have to resort to begging since he’s left me completely bound. One of his hands holds my wrists in an iron grasp, his body is pressing into mine nearly cutting of my circulation, and his other hand rests on my neck below my head so that I can’t look away.

“It’s not going to hurt, babe, in fact you’re going to be screaming in pleasure.” His eyes darken with lust as his hand moves to sensually roam my back.

I feel sick, I feel so so sick and disgusted and the only screams that would be coming out of my mouth would be cries of help.

“No . . . please . . . don’t.” He simply laughs at my pathetic responses and his free hand moves to the bottom of my shirt in order to lift it up while his lips are glued to my collarbone. I want to cry, I want to scream and yell and hit him till there’s not a single breath left in his body, but I don’t know how. In my mind I conjure up all these scenarios of ripping his head off but the truth is that he’s heavier, stronger, and drunk.

“That’ll be enough, Hank.”

My eyes fly open as I hear that voice and I don’t know whether to be relieved or scared to death. The piece of shit called Hank doesn’t seem like he’s in the mood to let me go, especially if the large bulge in his pants is anything to judge by. I whimper as he continues to lick my neck like the dog that he is and shoot a pleading look at the only other person present in the room with us.

“Please tell him to stop,” I beg, and Nicole gives me a bone-chilling smile.  
“I don’t know; I’m enjoying seeing you like this, so willing to fall at my feet.”

“Nicole, please.” His lips are everywhere and so are his hands; my shoulders are heaving in silent sobs.

“For what you did today, showing up when I’ve told you so many times to not show me your fat ass more than I already have to see, don’t you deserve to be punished, Tessie?”

I can’t believe that I ever used to be friends with someone like her, someone so vile, so hell-bent on getting their way that they resort to the most vicious of things. I taste bile at the back of my throat as Hank’s assault continues, his chapped lips now sucking on my earlobe.

I swallow my pride. “I’m sorry. I promise I won’t do it ever again, please just ask him to stop.”

She watches me writhe for about two more minutes, clearly enjoying my pain, before she grabs Hank by the top of his hair and drags him away from me.

“Good boy, now leave before anyone sees you. Remember, not a word about this to anyone,” she instructs and my mouth falls open when she kisses him square on the mouth, tongue and all, until he’s ready to faint. He looks dazed and wide-eyed as he finally leaves the bathroom scratching the back of his head, making me let out the breath I’d been holding for so long.

I need to go, I need to go and shower for the rest of my life to get his germs off of me. I feel so filthy and used that I just want to burst into tears.

He could’ve gone further, he could’ve done worse, I remind myself to stop the sobs. I try to push past Nicole in order to leave but she wraps her fingers around my upper arm and yanks me back.

“This was nothing, Tessa. If you ever go against me again, I’ll make sure your punishment’s even worse,” she seethes, shoving me away once she’s made her threat. I stand there letting her words sink in as she exits, slamming the door behind her.

***

I stand in front of the sink trying to identify the stranger in the mirror. My makeup is now running down my face, the mascara creating tear tracks as it flows down. My lipstick is smeared, the blush now considerably unnoticeable above my red splotchy cheeks. My hair is tangled and sticking out in all directions with a bump pulsing painfully on my head. My shirt’s ridden up and slightly torn at the ends, all in all I look like the kind of girl who went for a quickie in the bathroom stall. Splashing my face a couple of times with cold water I use a towel to wipe away the garish makeup but the thought of Hank’s hands all over me has me feeling dirtier than ever.

I rush outside, trying not to run into someone I might know. I don’t want to run into someone or explain why I look like Courtney Love on a bad day. The party’s still going in full swing and it’s the perfect setup to escape without being noticed.

Until...

“Tessa? Are you okay?” Jay grabs my arm and I flinch, still a little afraid of being touched. He’s standing right in front of me looking worried. I can’t find it in myself to look him in the eye, seeing as how his girlfriend just had me assaulted.

“I’m...fine, just let me go,” I say softly and pull my arm away from him. He backs up just a bit but still doesn’t make room to let me go.

“No, you’re not, what happened?”

“Look, I just, I just really need to go home.” My voice is cracking up and I’m seconds away from crying in front of everyone from school.

“No, Tessa, it—”

“Tessie?”

I hear the second voice and something inside of me snaps. It’s Cole, he’s standing a few feet away from Jay and me but it’s obvious he knows something’s wrong. He strides toward us pushing and shoving past people; our gazes are locked onto each other and I forget that Jay’s here with me too.

He runs a hand through his hair in relief as he nears me, putting both hands on my shoulders. “Where did you go? I looked for you everywhere. I . . . lost track of you and no one knew where you went. Are you okay?” His voice which had been filled with panic earlier, grows softer with each word. It may have something to do with how devastated I look that he takes pity on me but I feel nothing but anger toward him right now. I need someone to blame for tonight and he’s the lucky winner.

I stare at him as he looks at me expecting me to answer his damn question, expecting me to apologize for making His Highness worry about me as I was being attacked in a bathroom. I feel fury and anger and rage all directed toward him. He did this; he brought me here even when I told him it would be a horrible idea. He didn’t listen to me because he thinks he’s so darn smart. All of a sudden the dam bursts.

I hit him. I hit him repeatedly, pounding on his chest as his eyes widen in shock.

“You! You did this! You brought me, I told you again and again that I shouldn’t come, you should’ve listened to me, and you shouldn’t have made me come here! I hate you, I hate you, I hate you so much!” I’m sobbing hysterically and the hitting loses its zeal. I clutch the fabric of his shirt in one hand and he pulls me close to him.

“Shh, Tessie, it’s okay, I’m here,” He sounds lost, like has no idea what’s going on but he’s still doing his best to comfort me. I bury my head into his chest and wrap my arms tightly around his waist.

“Why didn’t you listen to me?” I choke out and he rubs my back, rests his chin on top of my head, and whispers, “I’m sorry, Tessie, I’m so sorry.”

I hold on to him even tighter because it feels like if I let him go I might lose my safety blanket and Hank might come back. I don’t want Hank to come back. I cry and I cry as Cole continues rubbing his hand up and down my back.

“What happened to her?” I hear a voice ask and it reminds me that Jay’s still here. There’s nothing more I want to do in this moment than tell him about what Nicole did. I want to hurt her and cut her as deep as she cut me. But now I’ve been well acquainted with the consequences of going against her and so I know that I need to keep my mouth shut.

“Call it a wild guess but I’m pretty sure your girlfriend has something to do with it,” Cole spits angrily and since I’m so close to him I can feel his muscles tense up.

“Don’t start with that, Cole, she isn’t even—”

“Shut up, Jason, just shut up.”

With me still clinging on to him for life he begins leading us away from all the noise. We might be leaving the house but I don’t know since I don’t lift my head from where it’s resting on his chest. It’s when the cool, fresh air hits me that I know for sure that we’re outside. Cole lets go of me and I feel like hitting him again for doing so but quickly shut up when he takes off his leather jacket and wraps it around me. The material provides instant warmth but also swallows me up due to its massive size; it also smells like him and I once again feel secure.

Cole cups my cheek and makes me look up from where I’m inhaling the scent of his jacket.

“Are you okay, Tessie?” His thumb wipes away a tear that’s still lingering on my cheek; the action reminds me of Hank but it doesn’t repulse me like his did. It makes me feel warm on the inside.

He isn’t asking me to tell him what happened, he’s only asking me if I’m okay and I couldn’t be more grateful to him for understanding how I feel right now. Just thinking about what almost happened has the tears threatening to spill over again.

I nod just a little bit and he sighs, wrapping his arm around me and hugging me tightly. I’m aware that we’re in the parking area and no one’s around; just the two of us and it feels good. I hug him back not knowing why out of all the people that can comfort me right now it’s Cole who’s actually making me feel better.

Not my best friends and certainly not Jay- it’s Cole, and I just don’t know why.


	8. Chapter Seven: It's Spoon Lifting, Not Grand Theft Auto

“I’m not signing that.”

“It’s not like you actually have a choice—sign it.”

“No!”

“Yes.”

“How do I know you’re not going to use my signature to, I don’t know, take away all my life savings?”

“Yes, because working at Rusty’s has made you quite the billionaire.” He rolls his eyes.

“I will let you know that I have a respectable amount in my bank account.”

“Whatever makes you happy, sweetheart, now just sign this.”

I shake my head vigorously and once again push the napkin toward Cole. We’ve been going at it for about twenty minutes and by this point I’m pretty sure that the waitresses are under the impression that they’re witnessing an illicit drug deal. It would be understandable, though, since it’s about 11 p.m. on a Saturday night with the two of us sitting in a corner booth arguing over a contract that sounds highly suspicious.

“Okay, okay how about this, if you sign this napkin I’ll join your Range Rover crusade. Your parents love me already so if I were to drop hints here and there, it could speed up the process.”

I lean forward on the table, suddenly very interested in this deal. “Would you really do that?”

"We can talk about how amazing I am some other day, Tessie, we’ve got a very important napkin waiting to be signed.” He grins and I give him my best withering stare.

I groan in defeat and slide the napkin toward me, sign my name with the borrowed Sharpie and then slide it back toward Cole, who’s looking so smug that I want to wash that expression right off his face.

With the acid the janitor uses to clean the toilets.

“There, now was that so hard?”

I am this close to dumping my strawberry ice cream over his head but honestly, I could never do that to my precious, precious ice cream. It deserves so much better than to be wasted on a dumbass like him.

Right, of course explanations are in order as one might get confused because of our conversation. Let’s rewind and go back to the party, even though that’s probably the last thing I ever want to do, but for the sake of storytelling it must be done. See, after my knight in shining armor or in this case, my fool riding his much-too-expensive Volvo, rescued me and after we had our little moment, things got awkward. It’s almost painful to remember him passing me tissue after tissue and me bawling like the weakling I am.

I haven’t told him though. I haven’t said a word about why I’d flooded his car faster than the Titanic and he hasn’t asked though I know he’s dying to. Maybe it’s the tapping foot or the fingers drumming consistently on the table but I just know that he wants me to spill my guts.

Maybe that’s why he’s brought me to Rocco’s twenty-four-hour diner, to bribe me with the one weakness I have left from my Fatty Tessie days, well, apart from KitKats. I’m currently on my third serving of the delectable ice cream and with the way I’m inhaling it, I have a feeling that I’ll soon be sharing, pouring my heart out to him just so he buys me more ice cream.

Now the contract, or rather the ratty napkin, that’s getting a little worse for wear because of us tugging at it endlessly, the napkin is meant to seal a deal between us. By signing it, I will be admitting that I lied about Cole being the reason I once broke my arm in middle school. The reason that actually happened was that I’d followed Jay to the skating rink, lovesick idiot that I was. Given my utter lack of coordination, things had not ended well but the silver lining was that I’d been able to pin the blame on Cole and one of his pranks—heck, Jay even helped corroborate it. Both sets of parents believed me as opposed to him and let’s just say he got in a lot of trouble. Now Cole’s trying to clear his name and even as we fight, I realize that he’s only trying to distract me and I’m relieved to know that it’s kind of working.

I shake my head as if physically trying to remove memories of the incident from my mind and spoon some more ice cream into my mouth since it’s the only thing that’s keeping me relatively close to sanity. The night obviously hasn’t gone according to plan and my first attempt at entering the party circuit led to me being assaulted in a bathroom. I shudder as I remember the vicious look Nicole gave me as she left; it was like she suddenly decided to experiment with cannibalism and I would be her first meal. I don’t know what I’ve done to make her hate me so vehemently. No one hates another person so much without a solid reason, and the Nicole I used to know never did anything without a motive.

I feel someone kick me beneath the table and I drop my spoon to the floor in surprise. I gape at Cole, who’s snickering in his seat. He doesn’t realize how serious this is! The staff at Rocco’s is horrible, especially the ones on the night shift. Most of them lock themselves up in the supply room and do God knows what in there until the morning shift. Now where would I get a new spoon from, and how on earth would I finish the ice cream?

“What is wrong with you?” I growl as I get out of my seat and head toward the counter. Working at a rival diner I’ve learned a few things so I know the right places to look if I need extra cutlery. Usually they’d keep it in drawers near the cash register so that the limited number of workers wouldn’t have to run back and forth. I jump over the counter and sure enough the telltale chest of drawers is there; the only thing that could possible work against me now is if the drawer is...

Locked. The damn drawer is locked!

“Are you planning on robbing the place?” Cole sounds like he’s standing right behind me and sure enough as I twist my body slightly and crane my neck, he’s standing there smirking at me.

“I’m trying, Stone, to find myself a spoon so that I can eat my ice cream.” I pull the handles a couple of times but it’s useless. They’re locked and the manager has the key. From the way he’d been winking at our waitress, one could only guess what the two were up to.

“You’re really attached to that stuff, aren’t you?” He’s still standing there being completely useless and annoying. It’s because of him that I’m going to have to steal cutlery or possibly break into the supply room.

“It would be really nice of you if you stopped talking and try figuring out a way to help me.”

He snorts and pushes me aside with ease. Taking my place in front of the drawers he tells me, “Watch and learn, rookie.”

He takes out a screwdriver from his back pocket and in a move that is surprisingly normal to me he begins picking the lock.

“Of course I forgot, I’m hanging out with a delinquent,” I say dryly and he winks at me.

“Only for you, babe.”

“Gross! Don’t ever call me that again.”

He bursts out laughing at that point, the top drawer swinging open as he backs away, doubling over. I look at him like he’s finally become the lunatic that he’s been threatening to become since the day I met him. But all of a sudden the sound of his laughter begins to ring merrily in my ear and not shrilly; all of a sudden I just want to stand there and watch him laugh, my heart flip-flopping inside my chest.

"I was referring to the pig, shortcake."

Well, this is uncomfortable.

After the criminal and I have stolen, no, borrowed the spoon, I finish my ice cream in peace and make a run for it. I can’t help but look over my shoulder fearing Betsy the waitress will come running after us and throw her lethal skates at us.

Oh, snap out of it, Tessa: it's spoon-lifting, not grand theft auto!

We escape with great stealth, especially on my part, and Cole heads toward my house. I know he’s barely holding in laughter because of my actions, but I’m not a seasoned delinquent like him and even if it was a spoon, I did steal it. He’s turning me into a criminal too! I really need to stop letting him hang around me so much. In fact, when he drops me off I’m going to ask him to stop blackmailing me into spending time with him. I need to stand up for myself and show him that he can’t just walk all over me.

“Tessie?” he asks, breaking the spell of the thoughts I’m currently having, ones which consist of me chasing him out of my house with a gigantic baseball bat in my hand. He’s staring at the road ahead but with the way his knuckles are tightening around the steering wheel I can tell that his mind is somewhere else and he’s not exactly thinking positive thoughts.

“Yeah?” I ask a little hesitantly since I know where this conversation is going. I don’t know if I’m ready to answer his questions, especially since I’m already trying to block the memory of Hank and his filthy hands from my mind forever.

“Have you been hurt?”

His words hang in the air and at the same time it feels like they’re weighing me down, some kind of anchor dragging me down with it as it sinks. I ponder his question as we drive down the quiet road. I’m not hurt—well, not physically at least, but mentally it’s an entirely different ballgame. I’m terrified, feeling like every visible part of my skin is covered in filth and that any moment Hank could show up to finish what he started. Add to that the painful bump on my head acting as a constant reminder of what happened, I could honestly admit that yes, I’m hurt, even if it’s not visible.

“No.”

I never said I could honestly admit it to Cole, though.

We’re both quiet as my words hang in the air.

“If you hate me right now, I understand. I said that I’d take care of you and I failed. But please just . . . tell me what happened. You looked so hurt, so scared. I don’t think I’ll ever be able to forget the look on your face. Whoever did that deserves the worst kind of hell.” He grits his teeth.

My lips start to wobble and I almost give in, almost. He’s right to assume that I’m angry at him. Of course he’s not Nicole and neither is he Hank but pinning this on him gives my anger an immediate outlet. I almost tell him about what happened but I know he has a history of violence so the probability of him going off the deep end is very high. I don’t need things to escalate and what I really should do is nip this thing in the bud while I’ve got the chance.

“I don’t want to talk about it.”

“Maybe you talk about it and what I really . . .” He pushes and I groan.

“I just don’t want to.”

“Will you ever want to?”

“I’m not sure.” I wring my hands looking down at my lap.

He doesn’t push me again but the silence that falls is just as nerve-wracking. My heart starts to race and my stomach clenches uncomfortably as Cole drives down the road. The need to tell someone, especially Cole makes me taste bile because saying the necessary words make me want to throw up.

“I need some time,” I tell him and from the corner of my eye I see him flinch. It has to be bad enough that I can’t even talk about it and watching the realization hit him is painful.

“Right.” He swallows heavily. “Whenever you’re ready.’

The car comes to a stop outside my house and I rush out, greedily breathing in the fresh air like I’d just been underwater. Hoping to get as far away from Cole as possible before I end up saying too much, I rush inside and then curse inwardly when I realize that I’ve forgotten my house keys, again. I hear Cole come up behind me and I turn away from him as he unlocks the door and lets me go in first.

***

I can hear footsteps behind me as I walk into my living room; I’m still shaking just a little not knowing if it’s because of Cole’s proximity or the aftereffects of the party. I know it’s him-of course it’s him- and he’s turning out to be as opposed to giving me some space as a kangaroo is to its newborn.

“Tessie, wait—”

“No, okay, no. I’m done, I’m just done with everything. I told you I need some time and space and you still follow me in here. What do you want from me?” I cry out, facing him, and he clenches his jaw, his eyes ablaze with what I’m expecting to be fury but it’s not, it’s something else entirely.

“I just want to make sure you’re okay." His voice is soft as he approaches me like I'm a wounded animal.

“Why? After everything you’ve ever put me through, do you honestly expect me to share my deepest darkest secrets with you? Was that your master plan, Cole, because if it was, then I have to say military school sure as hell destroyed you.”

He looks winded as though I’ve struck him and maybe that was what I intended, a verbal slap to the face. I’m lashing out, I need someone to take all my anger out on and he’s the nearest target.

“I’m the last person who’d ever want to hurt you. I know I’ve done some stupid things in the past but . . .” he struggles to find words, “I would never intentionally do anything now that could hurt you even a little.”

“How can you expect me to believe that? You think you can just waltz back into my life and try to, what, fix it? Have you ever thought about the fact that there’s a reason I don’t try to do something about it all? I don’t want to get myself involved in something I can’t handle!”

His face softens and he takes a few steps so that he’s now closer to where I’m breathing rather heavily. I’m[ still angry but I know now that it's not him that my anger is directed toward.

“You’re strong, Tessie," he says quietly. "You’re so strong and I know that more than anyone else.”

“Is it because I still haven’t kicked the bucket despite all your attempts?” I say dryly. It’s a desperate attempt to end our argument. I just don’t feel comfortable whenever things get confusing between us. It needs to be either black or white, he either needs to be relentlessly bullying me or ignoring me. I don’t like it when we lose sight of what the nature of our relationship is actually like.

“Oh please, I couldn’t hurt a fly. Beneath this hot, sexy, rugged exterior there’s a heart of gold.” Cole, I think, wants us to stop talking about feelings just as much as I do. We come to a silent acceptance to raise the white flag, for now.

“I think you meant stone, Stone.” I push past him and toward the refrigerator. Taking out a bottle of water I unscrew the cap and gulp greedily. Between all the crying and screaming one sure does get thirsty. Beside me, Cole takes a minute to cool down and I see him tapping away on his phone. I bet he’s taking care of all that needs to be taken care of because he’s good at that. And despite our argument, I’m glad he’s here because if I were alone, I’d probably be a crying heap on the floor.

***

“Aren’t your parents coming back?” Cole asks from inside my room while I’m changing into my pajamas in the bathroom.

“They’ve gone to see my grandparents so they’ll be away for the weekend,” I shout out as I start brushing my teeth. My mom’s dad was the mayor before my own father and now with the elections so close, my dad’s realized that he’s desperately in need of help. It’s kind of obvious that my mom was thrilled seeing her husband so readily begging for her help.

“What about Travis?”

“I don’t really know where he goes at night or what he does.”

“I’m not saying that I have the most normal family, especially with Jay for a brother, but don’t you think there’s something wrong with this picture?”

“Which part? The part about my absentee parents or my depressed brother?” I finally come out after having showered thoroughly, scrubbing every inch of my skin until it’s raw. I feel much better after having convinced myself that no traces of Hank remain on me and I almost feel normal again, almost normal but just not quite there

“All of it, Tessie. What the hell happened in these three years?”

He’s watching me as I towel-dry my hair but it’s as if he knows that at the moment, anything that is remotely sexually suggestive would freak me out so he averts his gaze. I’ve intentionally gotten out my baggiest clothes for the night. The full-sleeved red shirt has a picture of Snoopy on it and the striped pajama bottoms are so long that I had to roll them three times to keep myself from tripping.

“All the bad stuff. My dad became mayor, my brother lost everything, and my best friend decided that I wasn’t good enough for her. In more recent news, you decided to come back."

“Ah, your love for me just overwhelms me, Tessie.”

“Glad I could make your day.” Sarcasm drips from my voice as I settle on the little stool placed in front of my vanity table and face him.

"You’re such a ray of sunshine, shortcake.” He places a hand over his heart. “What did I ever do to deserve a friend like you?”

“Friend? In your dreams maybe.” I don’t look at him and start brushing out my hair.

“At least you’re okay with me dreaming about you. I thought I was going to have to deal with a blanket-ban situation. Note to self, it’s okay to dream about Tessie.”

“Stop flirting with me, it’s nauseating!” The effect of my command is subdued by the huge yawn that I let out while I say this. All my muscles ache and my head feels like it weighs a ton, my eyes are drooping and I feel like if I get up from the little stool I’m sitting on I’ll just end up falling face-first on the floor.

“You’ve made your point, Sleepy, now come on get into bed.” Cole helps me up and guides me to bed. Because the events of the night have taken their toll on me, I don’t think twice about snuggling into bed and pulling the covers over me. It’s when I register that Cole’s still in my room looking a little uncomfortable that I lift my head from the pillow.

“You don’t happen to have a spare mattress I can crash on, do you?”

We have an entire spare room but I don’t think I want to tell him that.

“Why would you do that? You literally live five minutes away.”

“Look, I can’t leave you alone in this place, not after tonight.”

I open my mouth to correct him and tell him that I don’t need him to babysit me but he continues talking.

“I know you hate the idea, I get it but I’ve seen you looking over your shoulder every other minute since we left that damn party so I know you’re scared. It’ll give me some peace of mind if you’re not here by yourself.”  
“If you really want to, you can crash in the living room,” I mutter under my breath and he exhales, as if relieved that I’m letting him stay. I close my eyes and pretend to sleep when I hear him walk away. Half an hour later I’m cowering in my bedroom and pull the covers tighter around myself so that they surround me like a cocoon. My eyes keep darting toward the locked door and the shut windows as if expecting someone to jump right out of them.

Expecting Hank to break them open is more like it.

I try to sleep but as soon as I close my eyes, I start remembering and seeing everything that happened and it makes me feel sick. I don’t know what to do anymore, nothing’s helping. No amount of deep breathing or super crappy pop songs. All I can do is overthink and reach the point of hyperventilation as I think about Nicole’s threat, Jay’s expression, and most of all Hank’s hands all over my body. I sniffle and shoot out of my bed as the need for a distraction is driving me crazy. I need to be annoyed the crap out of, if I want to stop thinking about the night and of course there is only one person whose services are available twenty-four-seven.

I find myself going downstairs and the very first thing I notice is that Cole is shirtless! He’s shirtless and lying on the pullout couch, wrapped up in a throw blanket. He’s got my copy of The Alchemist in his hands and he seems to be pretty engrossed in it so I don’t think he’ll notice if I sneak by him and curl up next to him. But it’s as if he senses my presence in the room and lifts himself up, putting the book aside.

“Are you okay?”

I abandon my ninja-like plans and just stand there feeling embarrassed. I mean I basically told him that I didn’t need him to worry about me and here I am acting like the weakling I truly am.

“I couldn’t sleep,” I admit and then find myself explaining it to him. “I was scared and the nightmares kept waking me up."

“He looks a little dumbfounded and I’m just about to run back up to the room, pretending that I never cracked like this but the way he treats me is surprisingly gentle. It’s as if he knows exactly how to make sure that I don’t break down and shut him out.

“This pullout bed is big enough for two people...” he suggests and I’m shaking my head before he can finish the sentence.

"...or how about you go back to bed and I can crash on the floor. That might help with you being afraid,” he tells me softly.

Eyeing both the couch and thinking of my bed upstairs, I realize that he’s right. Much as I hate to admit it, I just might need him by my side.

“Just don’t even attempt to touch me and we’ll be fine. You will stay on the floor.” I warn him as he starts to sit up. I immediately avert my gaze from his naked chest.

“Relax, shortcake, I promise to be a complete gentleman. No touching, I promise.”

I think we both find ourselves thinking of the promises he’d made earlier and the debacle that was my first party. I shudder at the thought.

“Perfect, thanks. Also let’s try not mentioning this to anyone, okay? It’s just a one-time thing. I . . . I don’t usually ask boys to sleep in my room. This is a one-off, have I said that already?” I find myself rambling and his brows furrow in confusion as I rush up the stairs, comforted by the sound of Cole’s footsteps following me. I freeze at the threshold to my room.

“Tessie,” he says carefully, “what happened?”

“I’m too tired right now, I’ll explain tomorrow, I promise.” I don’t want him to hear the panic in my voice but it’s there and it’s apparent. He sighs but says nothing else as we work together to create a makeshift bed for him on my floor and I realize that he won’t be asking me any more questions, not tonight, at least.

***

I wake up gasping in the middle of the night after a very horrible and a very vivid nightmare.

Someone’s calling out my name and shaking me. The idea of someone touching me makes ice settle in my veins. I open my mouth to scream when I hear his voice.

“Shh Tessie, it’s just me. It’s Cole, you’re okay, I got you.”

My bedroom is pitch black but the moonlight from the window illuminates his face. I lift myself to sit up straight as Cole gets me some water. Utterly embarrassed, I start worrying about how I’d explain this to Cole. He obviously knows that something bad happened to me but bad enough to give me nightmares? Yeah his imagination must be going wild.

I start to panic and it starts getting harder to breathe. I’m almost about to ask for a paper bag when Cole sits down next to me and slowly, tentatively rubs soothing circles across my back. He’s hesitant as though not sure how I will react but the circular motion feels so comforting, I almost purr.

“You’re okay,” he repeats.

I breathe in and out and let myself calm down. The nightmare is still lingering in my mind but knowing that Cole’s here and that I’m safe within my house makes it easy to push thoughts of the party aside. I lean into Cole, as if seeking more of his warmth and rest my head on shoulder, his very naked shoulder.

Now my heartbeat’s skyrocketing for an entirely different reason. Despite all my attempts to keep him out of my space, out of my bed, that’s exactly where he’s ended up and I . . . I actually don’t mind. Clearly I’m conflicted because even as I try to shift and put some distance between us, I miss the heat of his palm against my back. Cole’s not trying to make a move, he just sits there with me and holds me. His face is mere centimeters away from mine and I can see every single line and contour of his face clearly. He’s gorgeous, of course he is, I won’t deny that any further but he’s also . . .

Mean.

_Yet he took care of you today, says a nagging voice in my head._

Arrogant.

_He’s been sitting with you in all your classes and at lunch since the day he showed up. He obviously isn’t worried about his image, the voice scolds._

Conceited.

_With a face like that who wouldn’t be?_

I shake the thoughts out of my head before that stupid voice can defend Cole some more. It’s annoying, and I don’t like that any part of me, however small it is, is starting to accept him, faults and all. I do owe him for today but he owes me ten years’ worth of humiliating memories.

Though that’s not what I think when I shift just a little closer to him, seeking his warmth. His breath fans my face and boy, does he smell good. It’s such an addictive scent making me want to move closer and closer to him. Taking me by surprise, his arm tightens around me and pulls me closer so that I'm now pressed up against his chest.

I would question his motives but there’s nothing sexual about how he’s holding me, he’s simply trying to comfort me when I badly need it. So even though my breath hitches and my skin tingles I don’t move away from him. I just feel his heart beating against my own and somehow it relaxes me. I stare at his face for some time trying to understand this boy with his delinquent instincts and his irreparable habit of constantly shaking up my life and realize that he’s changed.  
He’s changed; he isn’t the guy who left me four years ago with a stink bomb in my locker as a farewell present. Something’s happened that has made him change his attitude toward me. That something that is stopping him from teaming up with Nicole and joining her quest to make my life a living hell.

So as I’m having my first-ever sleepover with Cole Stone, I try to think of a reason as to why he’s acting the way he is and honest to God, I’m just too terrified to find out.


	9. Chapter Eight: You're Smiling Like A Horny Guy On A Dodgy Street Corner

“I wake up the next morning due to the annoying morning light that seems to be so annoyingly streaming through my window. I groan and roll onto my side so that my face presses into the sheets and mentally curse myself for not drawing the curtains before going to bed. I pull my fluffy purple blanket over my head and try going back to sleep.

However, even as I’m trying to slip into a deep slumber I can sense that something’s different and it’s irking me. I’m still too warm and comfortable in my bed to actually get up and see why it is that sleeping in—an experience that I cherish more than life itself at times—is getting so bothersome. Then I sense it, the reason why my stupid brain refuses to shut down and let me get some sleep, I know what the difference is.

My sheets don’t smell like the peach-blossom-scented detergent our cleaner uses. It’s like the scent has been overwhelmed by something stronger, something much more delectable and inviting. Before I allow myself to greedily inhale more of the delicious scent my brain goes into overdrive and warning bells sound in my head. This smell does not belong to me, this smell cannot be associated with any of my family members because there’s only one person that I know who could leave traces of such a scent, and I really don’t want to think about the hows and the whys regarding that particular situation.

Sleep abandons me immediately when I realize that I’m no longer sleeping but just lying down and acting like an obsessed stalker while smelling my sheets. Getting up quickly, I groan and grunt, stomping my feet on the ground, cranky because I really could do with more sleep. I yawn, opening my mouth widely, and run my hand through the tangled mess that is my hair.

“Good morning to you too, Tessie.”  
My eyes are still encrusted by the remnants of sleep so I have to squint and focus to make out the person who has the nerve to bug me when I’m feeling like a cavewoman. Of course it’s him, who else could it possibly be? Cole leans against the door, looking ridiculously good for whatever god darn time it is. I could say that I’ve forgotten about him holding me last night, I could say that seeing him doesn’t have my jaw dropping or my eyes bulging out of their sockets, but that would be a lie.

“Not in the mood,” I mutter grouchily and lock myself in my bathroom, though I can still hear him laughing outside.

Even though I took a shower before going to bed last night, I still feel grimy and hence allow myself to be assaulted by the hot water as it rouses me out of my zombie-like state. Once I’m as shiny and new as a baby’s bottom I brush my teeth and pull on my robe. Afterward, I lock my door and walk toward my closet.

Usually it takes me about two minutes to pick an outfit but somehow today I don’t want to wear my ratty old sweatshirt and jeans. It’s like my hand gets repelled when I try taking something out from my everyday clothes and I frown. It’s the weekend, the perfect opportunity to dress down, but I just don’t want to.

Sighing, I go to the very back of the walk-in closet and try not to flinch at the amount of pink in there. I like pink, don’t get me wrong, but then there’s only so much of it that you can have in your closet before it starts looking like something the Pink Panther threw up.

I pick out a fitted long-sleeved gray top with some distressed jeans. Since we’re at home, I slip into a cute pair of sandals. Once dressed I tie up my hair into a messy bun and put on some gloss. Then I bounce downstairs, suddenly finding myself in a good mood.

I find Cole busy in my kitchen. There are blenders whizzing and pots and pans on the stovetop. He’s got a chopping board in front of him and is going at the vegetables like a pro. For a second I just stand there fixated by his skill and feel slightly embarrassed by the fact the only time I tried to cook I ended up blowing up the oven.

“Done drooling, shortcake?”

I stop staring as I register his words and manage to put some bite behind my words even though I’m not really up for an argument with him at the moment.

“I’m sorry but I don’t bat for your team, Martha Stewart.”

His smirk drops and he glares at me. “Now you’re just being sexist.”

“You’re wearing my mom’s old apron; you should’ve seen that coming.” I chuckle and take a seat opposite the kitchen counter.

“This,” he points to his T-shirt, “is new and cost me fifty bucks; I don’t care if I look like one of the Real Housewives of New Jersey as long as I don’t get pancake mix on it.”

I notice that he’s changed too; maybe he left at some point to go home.

“You sound more and more like a girl each day.”

He gasps audibly and before I know it he’s thrown a fistful of flour at me. “Take that back,” he says and I just sit there in shock while grimacing at the bitter, powdery taste in my mouth.

“You idiot! I just showered,” I whine as I try dusting off the flour from my face, my hair, and my brand-new top.”

“You questioned my masculinity, bad move, Tessie.”

“You’re so, so . . . !” In frustration and mostly annoyance at how he’s turned my good bright sunny day into one where I’m possibly in the mood for murder, I grab my glass of orange juice and throw it at his face.

Though when I realize what I’ve done I gasp in shock and cover my mouth with my hands. I’m not an impulsive person; I always think something over a billion times before I actually go through with it. In fact, I don’t just think, I overthink. I am the queen of the land of the overthinkers, so for me to have done what I just did is just completely out of character. I have somehow managed to pour orange juice all over the guy who’s known better for his ability to keep a grudge than his sexcapades, basically hitting the motherlode of impulsive mistakes.

“I’m so sorry! I didn’t, I mean you were there and I got angry and I’m so sorry.” My voice is muffled as I cover my face with my hands and peek through my fingers to see if he’s breathing fire and if I should start reciting my last will and testament but to my surprise he looks . . . amused?

“What?” I ask him as I finally uncover my face and he, in all his OJ-drenched glory, smiles at me. I wonder if he’s suffered any serious brain damage between the hours that I slept.

“You splashed juice all over my face,” he muses, still smiling.

“Yes, Einstein, I did, but that doesn’t explain why you’re smiling like a horny guy on a dodgy street corner.”

He bursts out laughing at that and his laughter is infectious and I find myself joining in though I still don’t know why he isn’t choking me with his bare hands.

When he stops laughing, Cole takes a dish towel and wipes his face clean. The shirt he tried so hard to protect is now stained so obviously he does what he considers the most rational move.

He takes it off.

My eyes widen and my breathing falters as he slowly shrugs out of the now-sticky material. It’s like watching an Abercrombie & Fitch commercial only better because his body is so much more sinful than any of their Photoshopped models. I withhold a sigh as he uses the towel to wipe off his stomach and I nearly faint when I see the eight-pack. Holy cow, eight freaking pack.

“Try not to burn the house down while I put these in the laundry.” He chuckles, leaving the kitchen with me standing there feeling absolutely starstruck. I know I saw him shirtless last night but it was nighttime and we were in bed. It kind of made sense to be half naked then but now in broad daylight my heart and brain just can’t handle it as they’re both going into overdrive. I stare at his broad, smooth-skinned back and the indentations of his muscles as he walks away from me and to the laundry room.

I’m vaguely aware of shutting down the blender and trying to flip a pancake perfectly but narrowly missing the floor when I try.

“The key is in the wrist.” I jump as arms shoot out from behind my waist and take a hold of my hand that holds the spatula. All of a sudden I’m surrounded by the same scent that I was intoxicated by in the morning and there’s no hint of a doubt as to who it is behind me. The sound of his voice tells me that he’s closer than I want him to be and the fact that his arms are around me is seriously destroying my resolve. I don’t want him to know that his nearness is having the effect that it is so I straighten up my spine and nod like I’m listening to his instructions. His fingers are gentle as they clasp on my wrist and help me flick a pancake perfectly in the air before it lands perfectly in the center of the pan.

“I did it.” Smiling to myself I try to move to face him but at the same time as I turn my head and before I can register the situation, Cole grabs the bowl full of pancake batter and pours it all over my head.

I squeal as the cool, thick liquid travels from the top of my head, slipping gradually inside my sweater, making me squirm. I splutter and choke as Cole clutches his stomach cackling like the slimy hyena he is.

“That was,” he can’t stop his laughter and I see his eyes water because of it, “epic!” He gasps like he could use a tank full of oxygen at this point. I lean against the counter and angrily wipe at every reachable corner on my face but it dawns on me that nothing is salvageable at the moment and I’m going to need another shower.

“You!” I lunge for Cole, who’s trying to catch his breath but failing miserably. Grabbing a bowl of whisked eggs I take advantage of his distracted state and nearly smash the bowl over his head so that the gooey liquid is smeared all over his gorgeous hair.

Dye my hair red and call me Brave—eat your heart out, Disney!

“You didn’t!” He growls and stalks toward me. I smile sweetly.

“Aww, is the widdle baby hurt?” I coo and pinch his cheeks and apparently that’s what it takes to set off Cole Stone’s fuse since he grabs me by the waist and throws me over his shoulder in a move as fast as lightning.

“Oh, you’re going down,” he says, his voice dripping with promise and pure evil.  
I really do hate to admit it but I don’t mind the view I’m getting right now. His still-naked back is fully on view, and the fact that he’s walking causes the muscles to flex. His jeans are slung low, and I do have to admit that he has a fine, fine backside.

“Oh no, oh no, please don’t do what I think you’re going to do,” I beg as he jogs lightly in the direction of the pool.

“You should’ve thought about that before.” The mischief in his voice has a shiver run down my back and I increase the pounding on his back.

“Let me down, Stone!” I try to put some power behind my words but all he does is chuckle in response; I can tell because his shoulders are shaking. The blood’s rushing to my head as I hang upside down and from behind the curtain of my hair I see us approach the edge of the pool, and Cole’s hold on my waist loosens. I squeeze my eyes and brace myself for the fall.

“Take a deep breath, Tessie!” he shouts and I prepare myself for the fall but to my surprise he jumps along with me as we both fall into the pool with a gigantic splash. I’m swallowed by the water and Cole finally releases me, and even underwater I can see the fat grin on his face. Placing my hands on his shoulders I push him downward as I propel myself out of the water. Turns out this isn’t the greatest move since he wraps his own arms around my waist and pulls me flush against him.

He resurfaces looking every bit the male model he could be and smirks at me. I hate seeing how he’s not at all breathless or flustered like me. In fact, his gleeful expression is confusing me so much. I don’t know what we are anymore; there’s no defined relationship and our compromising position isn’t really helping it. We’re pressed together, his shirtless chest with my soaked top is no match for the water.

I should’ve done something, in hindsight. I mean there were so many options to choose from. I could’ve used one of the many witty remarks stored in my arsenal. I could’ve kneed him in the crotch or broken his nose with one quick punch, taught courtesy of a lucid Travis. But I don’t do any of that.

In fact, as I see him looking at me like he is with his blue eyes shining and the corner of his mouth pulling up into what looks like a genuine smile, I can’t help but want to be closer to him. It’s all so foreign to me, all of this. Every single touch, every look, every smile is new to me since at eighteen years old I’ve never been kissed nor have I ever dated.

When you have a falling out with the girl who has the reins to the entire school in her manicured paws, guys don’t really want to be around you.

No guy, except Cole.

I shiver as his hands travel from my waist, skimming lightly up the skin of my sides until his hand’s cupping the side of my neck, angling my head toward him. I know he’s waiting for a reaction, any sign that I want him to stop but I don’t think I’m really in the mood to go all ninja on him right now. It’s like he senses this and a heartwarming smile lights up his face, one which has my heart doing Olympic-winning flips. I rest my hands on his shoulders, needing the support to just be upright. There are a lot of things that are wrong with this situation, the first and foremost being that I’m in the arms of the boy who’s done nothing but make my life a living hell for as long as I've known him.

“Does the fact that he’s currently suffering from the guardian angel syndrome necessarily have to change everything? Should I trust him knowing what our history is like? Should I . . .

“Stop overthinking, Tessie, just enjoy the moment.” He winks and dips his head so that our foreheads are pressed together intimately along with our bodies.

“What . . .” I start but he places a finger over my lips.

“Enjoy the moment,” he repeats.

I do listen to him this time. Cole doesn’t move his face even an inch because if he did, then our lips would definitely brush up and the idea terrifies me, almost as much as it strangely seems to exhilarate me. I look into his eyes trying to work out what secrets lie in their sapphire-like depths. The distance between us is becoming almost imaginary and there’s a thin line we need to cross before everything changes.

“Cole, is that you?”

Or we could just be interrupted.

I freeze, dropping my hands from Cole’s shoulders instantaneously. In response his eyes harden as they look into the distance. He can see the person who just called out, and whoever it is is the one responsible for his mood’s one-eighty-degree turn. Even though he backs up a bit so that our faces aren’t touching, his hand still cups my neck and it seems like he’s not willing to drop it. I feel like he’s challenging the person watching us.

It’s sad, though, that I know from just from the sound of his voice who the person is. Having that particular piece of information, I just wish I could drown in the five feet of water we are currently standing in.

“You always did have the worst timing, Jay Jay.”

I untangle myself from Cole who, realizing that I feel extremely uncomfortable, lets me go. Swimming toward the large rectangular steps that lead out of the pool, I begin to climb out. Fully aware that I have two pairs of eyes watching me and the fact that my clothes are soaked and dripping wet, I wrap my arms around myself and head inside the house, scurrying past Jay, who, to his credit isn’t even looking at me.

I rush to my room and quickly shrug out of my clothes, throwing them to one side. I dry myself and pull on a different shirt and jeans. My sandals are floating somewhere in the pool so I trade them for flip flops. My big blond mess of hair makes me look like Cousin It so I let it down over my shoulders, running a brush through it to get the tangles out.

I don’t even care what I look like as I take two steps at a time hoping that the Stone brothers haven’t drawn each other’s blood yet. I find them in my living room standing across from each other. Cole with his hands stuffed in his pockets and Jay with his arms crossed over his chest. While the former looks arrogant as always, the latter has a deep frown set on his face, which reduces considerably when he sees me coming. I halt at the very unlikely scene before me; never could I have imagined that Jay would be in my house.

“Tessa.” He smiles but it looks forced. Cole turns his head and then averts his gaze after giving me a single glance.

“What are you doing here?” I skip the pleasantries knowing that the atmosphere doesn’t really call for them.

“I think she means ‘how the hell did you get in my house?’” Cole adds.

“You seemed pretty upset last night.” Jay ignores Cole and addresses me. I wince recalling the memory but he doesn’t notice. “So I thought I’d check up on you. I rang the bell a couple of times but you never answered. I got worried and asked your neighbor if she had a spare key. She knew who I was and let me in,” he explains, still not looking at Cole.

As much as I want to swoon over his words, it just doesn’t seem right. It’s been nearly four years since he’s come over and trust me, there have been plenty of occasions during said four years when I could’ve used a friend. I’m not mad at him but I’m pretty okay with the arrangement we have going on here. I pine away for him in the distance and he remains unreachable and untouchable—that works perfectly.

“You’ve seen her, she’s standing in one piece, so I think it’s time to say good-bye.” Cole sounds biting, harsh, and it’s like I can almost feel the waves of jealousy radiating off him, but that’s just me, right?

“I don’t think it’s any of your business, Cole. Back off,” Jay says with barely restrained anger. I don’t think I help the situation when I finally walk over to them and stand next to Cole. It’s like he senses that I’ve picked a side.

“Like hell I will, you’ve done enough to her, man. If you can’t help her, then don’t make things worse for her.”

“What the hell do you mean?” Jay growls and marches forward looking quite intimidating. I realize that this could lead to something that could get out of hand so I position myself in front of Cole and place a hand on Jay’s chest as he approaches us.

“Calm down, Jay.” My attempts at soothing him seem to fly right out the window when a flicker of hurt and disappointment comes across his face.

“He’s the one who’s hurt you and you’re defending him? What does he have over you, Tessa? Why are you spending so much time with him? I thought you hated him.”

Yeah, well, you and me both.

“It’s a long story, and it's not easy to explain so just let it go, please.”

“So what, you guys are buddies now, is that it? All those years he put you through hell and I’d be the one to step up and help you, but now that he shows a little interest, you switch sides.”

I back away from him like he’s slapped me and fall right into Cole’s chest. He steadies me and wraps an arm around me, pressing me to one side where I lean on him.

“You need to stop talking before I break your face,” Cole growls threateningly and Jay’s face falls a little when he meets my eyes. I know he realizes that he’s hurt me and that his attack was uncalled for. In this very moment I don’t recognize who he is. His eyes aren’t the warm ones I get lost in every day and there’s no smile threatening to break out over his face. He looks cold, worn out, dejected and lost, and I have no idea who he is.

“Tessa, I’m so sorry, that came out all wrong, I shouldn’t have . . .”

“You’re the one who picked someone else, Jay. I was always your friend,” I say through the choking feeling in my throat. I’m not going to cry in front of these two; they won’t have a repeat of last night’s show since I’m so much better than that.

He looks dumbfounded for a while before hanging his head in shame; he knows what, or rather who, I’m talking about. Cole’s arm tightens around me but that’s not what I need right now. I need some space from both of them. These two bring unnecessary commotion into my life and I just need to get away from them.

“I think you guys should leave,” I say quietly before removing Cole’s hand from around me and stepping back.

With that I run back into my room and fall down into my bed. Life’s a lot of things, I ponder. It’s tough, cruel, unfair, unpredictable, and everything else in the thesaurus, but it most certainly isn’t all about Cole and Jay Stone. Before either of them tries to make amends with me, they need to sort out their own demons. They really do.


	10. Chapter Nine: Well At Least The Kidnappers Are Keeping It Classy These Days

Discretion and stealth are not what some may call my strong suits. When you spend a better part of your life severely overweight, you tend to become a klutz and in relation to all that excess weight you also become noticeable. In the hallway you can always pick out the fat girl over and above everyone else. It’s always the fat girl who gets picked on in the lunch line and it’s always the fat girl who thinks surviving gym is tougher than going into battle. I was that fat girl three years ago.

Now since I fit society’s description of an acceptable high school girl, I’ve managed to lose a ton of those disadvantages. People for the most part tend to leave me alone. However, what I haven’t managed to lose is my lack of subtlety, which is why the moment I creep into school I’m ambushed by one of Nicole’s cronies. Even though I have my hood up and my face is hardly showing, they still somehow recognize me and one of them, Marcy, shoves into me hard enough so that all the contents of my bag spill over the floor. Sighing, I bend down to collect all the flyaway notes and important pieces of paper. It figures that they choose today to attack, seeing as it's the first time in nearly two weeks that I've come on my own and not been driven by Cole.

Cole.

Another despondent sigh escapes me as I think about him and how things went the last time I’d seen him. After the two of them left I switched off my cell phone and laptop and spent the rest of the day just wandering around the house listening to sad country music and reading depressing Edgar Allen Poe stories.

Before I can reach for my notebook someone else has already picked it up and as my eyes travel from her skull-and-bones-patterned Converse to her ripped tights, warmth and a sense of relief is finally starting to fill my chest. Being tossed around by a bunch of minions isn’t the best way to kick-start your Monday mornings, now is it?

“Hey.” Beth smiles as I get up from the floor. She hands me the notebook, her hands shaking slightly as she glares into the distance, no doubt at Thing One and Thing Two.

“One of these days I’m going to rip their hair right out of their scalps, and you won’t be able to stop me.” She’s still fuming as we walk to homeroom.

I understand why she reacts so strongly to these things. In her old school she’d been the bully she once told me, and it’d taken one near-death experience to make her realize that you just can play with people’s emotions so much. Beth looks quite intimidating but inside she’s a big softie and seeing people being taken advantage of brings back that side of her. If I were Nicole I’d tread with care because no one knows when my friend here will reach the point of saturation when it comes to bullying.

“You don’t need that on your permanent record, okay? Remember Berklee, your big dream school, I doubt they’ll take ax murderers.”

“At least I’ll rid the world of those brainless Barbies.”

“Hey! There's nothing wrong with Barbies. You should see my collection sometime," I say solemnly. "Well at least what’s left of it. Cole tended to feed their heads to his dog."

She chuckles and shakes her head as we enter our homeroom. Miss Sanchez is hiding her face behind a copy of Macbeth but we all know she’s asleep. There’s an essay topic written on the board, one which no one will bother to write. Well, no one except Meghna, who’s already in her seat and scribbling away like crazy. As we take our seats, me behind her and Beth next to her, she doesn’t even look up.

“What happened to her?” I ask while taking out my own notebook and pretending to copy down the topic.

“She’s been grounded because she came back home absolutely smashed and threw up in her mom’s $2000 vase.” Beth tries to hold her laughter back and so do I. What I wouldn’t have given to see the expression on Mrs. Sharp’s face when that happened.

“How come I didn’t know?” I ask quizzically.

“Well, if you actually switched on your phone you’d realize that this weekend didn’t go according to our little Meg’s plans.” She smirks and I see the girl in question pause, like she’s about to say something but she thinks better of it and continues scribbling away.

I feel a little guilty and eye my phone lying at the bottom of my bag. It made sense at the time to switch it off since I needed to get some space from both Cole and Jay but I didn’t think about the fact that my friends would try to contact me. After all I did desert them at a practical stranger's house, left them hanging for a ride, and then avoided all of their calls and texts after fleeing the scene.

“Speaking of the weekend, Cole said you needed some time before you’d want to tell us about it but seriously, Tessa, we were freaking out when we couldn’t find you. Then Jay started acting all weird, apparently he punched a wall or something and Nicole was extra nasty. Does this have anything to do with your disappearance?”

I duck my face to avoid any eye contact since my blinking would be a dead giveaway regarding the lie I’m going to tell them. I want to tell someone about Hank, I really do, but whenever I try to get the right words out of my mouth, my throat constricts and my knees begin to tremble. I get terrible flashes of his hands all over me and his lust-filled gaze and all I want to do is lock those memories up in the deepest recesses of my mind.

“No, of course it doesn’t,” I say in my too-high-pitched squeaky voice, “I just asked Cole to take me home because I wasn’t feeling so good. I think someone spiked my drink so I was feeling pretty out of it.”

Beth gazes at me for a few seconds like she’s trying to call my bluff but thinks better of it.

“Yeah, he texted us after you guys left and told us his friend would give us a ride back. I tried asking him what was wrong with you but he sounded a little pissed off.”

“We had a fight,” I murmur and doodle on my notebook. I try to place his unasked-for fury but to think he acted the way he did for my sake just baffles me. Since when does he care so much? Usually it’s him that’s making me cry and for him to get so mad at the idea of my getting hurt is pretty absurd.

“Like that’s a surprise,” snorts Beth, “but he took care of you, didn’t he? I talked to him yesterday and he said that you were much better.”

“Since when are you two so friendly?” I hope and pray that in reality that question didn’t sound as pathetic and laced with jealousy as it did in my head.

“Careful there Tessa, or we might start thinking you actually care about him.” She raises a pierced eyebrow and I turn red at what she’s trying to insinuate. I’m not jealous! I don't care who he talks to in his spare time. I'd actually be so relieved if he finds another girl he can torment all the time. I couldn't care less.

Except Beth’s just the kind of girl someone like Cole could fall for; she’s tough, adventurous, thrill-seeking, a bad girl out and out. The bad boy and the bad girl, they could live happily ever after. Why does this image make me want to gouge my eyes out with a blunt pencil?

“I don’t care-I just don’t want you getting hurt. Cole’s not exactly the kind of guy you want to get romantically involved with. He’s slept with half the school’s female population, you know,” I try saying nonchalantly, hoping that it’s enough to put her off him for life.

“Whoa there, hold your Barbie-loving horses, I’m not into him like that,” she exclaims. “You have dibs on that boy, Tessa. He’s all yours even if you don’t want him to be.”

Why are they under the impression that I have some sort of twisted claim on Cole? I don’t. Our relationship is more like . ...well, I really don’t know anymore.

“Oh no, we’re not talking about this again. Cole and I aren’t like that. He’s the super villain in my life. You know the kind with a creepy white cat in their lap, who wears an eye patch,” I say animatedly, but it appears that she’s not buying my theory, seeing how she’s rolling her eyes at me.

“That’s not what Alex said.” Meghna speaks up for the first time and I can see that her ears are turning red.

“Of course we’ve just got to believe what Alex says since he knows everything about anything.” Beth snorts and I stare at the two of them curiously.

“Am I missing something?”

“No, it’s nothing. I was just being silly as usual,” she chirps and goes back to working on her essay.

“Meghna’s got a crush and she’s being too stubborn to do something about it,” Beth says easily and then checks her nails.

“They met at the party and he’s the one who gave us a ride home. You should’ve seen the way he was flirting with her.”

“He was not flirting!” she says determinedly, finally abandoning her attempts to complete her homework at school. “We were just talking and he seems like a really nice guy.”

“He called you beautiful about eight times. I know, I counted.”

“It doesn’t matter.” She’s blushing profusely and now I’m just itching to know more. Meghna's the kind of girl who's always been to busy to fall in love. When she’s not aiming for a straight-A transcript, she’s volunteering at the homeless shelter and the orphanage and the Red Cross and the old age home . . .

“It does! He likes you and he’s cute, so why don’t you just answer his texts?”

“Wait, is he the guy you were dancing with?”

“No . . . I—I . . . he asked me and I didn’t want to say no. It didn’t mean anything.”

“But you looked like you were having a lot of fun.”

“Just drop it, guys, we’re not discussing this.” With her fiery red hair and gleaming green eyes, she’s quite the picture when she’s angry so we decide to not prod her further on the topic. It’s obvious that she feels uncomfortable discussing boys since she’s always been taught that education and college are her priorities.

“So where is Cole, anyway?” Meghna changes the topic but I can sense that she’s sorry for snapping at us like that.

“I don’t know really, usually he picks me up around seven thirty but he was late today and I had to ask my dad to drive me. I thought he’d be here but . . .”

“Could this have something to do with the fight?” Beth asks earnestly and I shrug. It may have something to do with a fight but not the one they’re talking about. I don’t know why I can’t tell them about me almost kissing Cole or Jay showing up and then the argument that followed. I want to, but somehow it just seems so personal. I’m such a horrible friend!

“Well don’t worry, he’ll probably show up, he can’t stay away from you for that long.” Beth winks and takes out her song book, signaling the end of her presence in this particular conversation.”

“Yeah, what she said, just find him later and talk things out.” Meghna smiles warmly and I nod.

“Yeah I’ll do that, I’ll find him later.”

***

I can’t find Cole.

I should be jumping for joy and running around like I’ve won the lottery, but all I feel is a stupid sense of despair building up in the pit of my stomach as I scan the hallways for him. Ever since he’s arrived back in town he’s been by my side, even when I’ve threatened to make voodoo dolls using his hair and prick them with sharp pointy needles every night before I go to bed. If the promise of dark magic couldn’t keep him at bay, then why is it that one little spat has made him vanish from the face of the earth? He’s not present in any of our morning classes but Jay is and he’s been sneaking glances in my direction when Nicole isn’t paying attention. While usually this thrills me, today I just feel depressed. He’s so confusing with his mixed signals and I’m almost tired of waiting for him to realize that he can do so much better than his vicious pit viper of a girlfriend. He’s sorry, I can see that, but it’s not so much his words that keep me away from him but the clear warning that’s written all over Nicole’s face. Now that Cole’s not around she’s been making up for lost time and adding in extra perks just for me. For example, since morning I’ve been called out for my fat hips at least ten times. I’ve got a nasty purplish bruise forming on my forehead from where she “accidentally” hit me too hard with a dodgeball and somehow I’ve managed to “misplace” the file in which I keep all my homework assignments; therefore, I didn’t hand in a single one today, which in turn has earned me detention.

This is my logical explanation for why I feel deprived of Cole’s company today. It’s not because I miss him or am thinking about our almost kiss—I haven’t thought about it since it happened. It’s not like I spent the better half of my Sunday replaying the scene over and over again in my mind and thinking about what could’ve happened had Jay not shown up in time. I miss him because he saves me from all this hassle, and wile I should feel insulted that I need his help just to get through the day, I just need to suck it up for the time being.

I’m on my way to the other side of the school for my economics class; the hallways are now more or less deserted since I’m running late because of my hunt for Cole. If I don’t see him today, then that’ll be that. It’s his choice if he doesn’t want to be around me anymore and I’m not going to beg him for his company.

With this optimistic thought in mind I skip to my class, feeling as though I’ve made a firm decision like the mature adult that I am. I’ll be the bigger person, I’ll be the one who gets to hold her head up high in the end, I’ll be . . .

I don’t get to finish the thought because think of the devil and he definitely does appear. Cole comes out of nowhere and veers me the opposite direction of where I’m supposed to go for class. I dig in my heels to try and stop, or at least get an explanation out of him. He ditched me this morning, and if he thinks that he can come up to me now and make me a partner in whatever crazy thing he’s up to, then he’s wrong

“Where are we going? I’m not missing class.” I stand my ground.

He whirls around and I’m hit with the force of his blue eyes for the first time today. It takes me back to our moment in the pool and my skin breaks out into goosebumps.

“If you checked your email you’d realize that class got cancelled today.” He hands me his own phone so that I can double check and there it is, our teacher is sick in bed and they couldn’t find a substitute in time.

“Okay so I have a free period, I’ll go catch up on some homework.”

“Or you could work with me here, please.”

“But where do you want me to go?”

“Do you trust me?”

We’re in the middle of the school hallway and attracting attention. I can feel so many eyes on the two of us but at that moment, I only see him and the sincerity in his gaze. He wants me to believe him desperately and in that moment, given the way things have changed for us recently, I do believe him.

“I do.”

***

He takes me to one of the supply closets near the girls’ bathroom. Well, at least the kidnappers are keeping it classy these days.

Or maybe not. I feel like I’m in a cheaply budgeted Hollywood thriller as he guides me into the darkened room. A single lightbulb flickers dimly above us and I’m pretty sure I see something crawling up the wall that I’d rather pretend I didn’t see. I’m about to tear into him when he flicks a switch and the small room is illuminated.

“Is this where you’re going to kill me, Stone? I have to admit, I’m a little disappointed. Where’s the theatre?”

He rolls his eyes and checks his watch impatiently.

“Would you believe me if I told you that no, I wasn’t planning on murdering you here?”

“Well, you could have fooled me. This is the ideal setting.”

I press myself against the wall and study him closely. He’s tense, his body rigid as if ready for a fight. I didn’t pick it up earlier but there’s this quiet energy around him that screams of barely restrained fury. What the heck happened?

“Cole, this starting to creep me out. Will you please tell me why we’re here? And why do you keep checking your watch? Are we waiting for someone?”

He hesitates and I’m pretty sure I won’t like where this conversation is headed.

“There’s a rumor going around and I wanted to be the one you heard it from.” He takes a tentative step toward me.

“What kind of rumor? Would you just say it already? This place is nasty and you’re starting to freak me out.”

“Some of the guys heard Hank Kelly saying some things after the party.”

My face drains of color and I start to tremble. Cole obviously doesn’t miss the change because he inches closer. He studies my face and his fingers lightly caress the back of my hand.

“I’m not going to repeat the things he said but I know that he's lying. If he put his hands on you, then..." he swallows. "I have to believe that you didn't consent to it."

My breath gets stuck in my throat and I inhale sharply through my nose. Goose bumps rise all over my skin, my heart’s hammering inside chest wildly.

“You don’t know what you’re talking about,” I gulp.

I now have a full name to place with my attacker’s face. He’s a person, a very real person who wanders these very hallways. I could run into him at any moment and that makes me want to lock myself inside my room and never leave.

Cole’s voice is gravelly. “If he did something to you, if he hurt you or put his hands on you, you need to tell me.”

“It’s none of your business. I don’t owe you anything.” The line would have sounded better if I wasn’t stuttering like crazy. I sound like I’m in the midst of having a seizure or that I have some sort of tongue paralysis. It’s no surprise that he keeps pushing.

“I’m not asking you to tell me because I think you owe me an explanation. I want to know because it’s not fair nor is it safe that a scumbag like that is wandering these halls without so much as a scratch on him. Predators like that deserve to rot in prison.

He doesn’t get it, if I admit to the attack then it becomes real. I’ve spent most of the past two days trying to forget whatever it was that happened at that party. I’d rather not relive it but on the other hand . . . the idea of Hank out there and still being able to prey on other girls sickens me.

“I need to go,” I tell him. I don’t think I can breathe.

Pushing past him, I open the door and run straight into someone. It’s a girl, young-looking and probably a freshman, with red-rimmed eyes. She’s startled to see me and jumps back. I feel Cole come up behind me.

“Annie, hey we were just waiting for you.”

She looks like a scared animal that Cole has to coax into speaking. First things first, I find us a better spot than the supply closet. Since it’s a free period for Cole and I, the halls are deserted with most people in their classes. I lead the two to a bench near the central courtyard of the school. Annie sits on the bench, her hands clasped in her lap while Cole and I stand leaning against opposite pillars.

“Annie, would you please tell Tessa what you told me?”

She looks scared but not of the two of us. It’s as if she thinks someone might be watching her so Cole kneels down before her and assures her. “She’s not here and even if she was, we’re not going to let her do anything to you. Just repeat what you heard.”

“I ...” she begins and casts me a pitying look. “I was at the party and I overheard Nicole and Hank.” She swallows. “I just got into the dance squad and Nicole had an initiation ritual for me, that’s why I kept following her at the party. I didn’t expect to walk in on...”

She couldn’t have... we were alone in that bathroom so she couldn’t have witnessed it but she knows.

“I overheard them talking about what they did to you and this morning he was around her again. They were coming up with all these lies that would destroy your reputation. I couldn’t ... I couldn’t let them do that.”

You know how they say if looks could kill? Well, if Cole’s face is anything to go by, I know that the possibility of Hank leaving the school premises today in one piece is not very high. I hadn’t anticipated a witness, I wanted this to go away quietly but that hasn’t happened.

Why? Why can’t I for once in my life be fortunate to have something work out in my favor? Why am I cursed with this horrible luck—I mean my mom’s half-Irish, does that not count for anything? Where’s my little leprechaun and that shining pot of gold at the end of the darn rainbow?

Annie scurries away as the bell rings and I don’t blame her. Nicole is the she-devil, disguised in a dancer’s body. My hatred for her has soared this past weekend and maybe that’s what gives me the courage to open up to Cole.

I tell him everything and guess what?  
  
Yeah, Hank isn't going to be among us living for very long now.


	11. Chapter Ten: Discussion Who The Peeping Tom Creeper Likes More

“Do you have a two?”

“Go fish,” I say, feeling smug, and he narrows his eyes at me.

“You’ve said that the last three times, shortcake, are you bluffing?”

I squawk at his accusation and throw my cards on the floor.

“I don’t play dirty, unlike you, Stone, and I would appreciate it if you stop accusing me of cheating!”

“Okay, okay, I’m sorry; how about we start again?”

“I’m not playing with you again.” I turn my head away from him and cross my arms stubbornly over my chest. I can hear him apologizing repeatedly but still it’s fun to give him a tough time. Let’s see how it goes for him without having someone to talk to or take his mind off the fact that he’s . . .

“Shut it down, you pipsqueaks; don’t make me come all the way down there!”  
I roll my eyes. "All the way down there” simply means down the hallway. But for good old Detective Greene it would mean taking his feet off his desk and stop munching on the box of donuts that currently rests on his beer belly. He gives us a reprimanding glare before going back to his truckload of jelly-filled goodness.

“Sorry, detective,” I yell back before going back to ignoring Cole, who’s starting to look worse for the wear.

Confused? Okay, then please allow me to explain.

Currently I’m sitting cross-legged on a grimy floor outside a single prison cell. Cole is mimicking my position, sitting opposite me, but the difference between us is that he’s behind the bars and I’m not. It took a lot of begging and pleading on my part to let Detective Greene allow me to sit here and wait until someone shows up to bail him out. It’s been two hours, two hours filled with abandoned card games, trips to the donut shop, and bickering, of course bickering.

“Tessie, come on, talk to me. I’m this close to starting to mark my time here on the walls.” He groans and I fight back a smile. He’s quite the image, sitting there wearing only a thin wife-beater and jeans. His hair’s more messy than how he usually keeps it and his bottom lip is split. Usually I’m not the type to appreciate the whole scruffy look, I like them well-kept and free of criminal convictions.

However, there’s something about seeing him like this that does hold a certain charm.

"It's only been two hours," I say with a roll of my eyes. "Even that one guy trapped in a canyon waited 127 hours before he sawed his hand off."

“Oh, you try coming in here if it’s so easy. Hey, detective!”

Slipping my hand through the bars I shove his chest. “Shut up! If we don’t stop annoying him he’ll lock you up with that other guy.”

I shudder as I catch a glimpse of the prisoner whose cell is opposite Cole’s. Apparently he’d installed hidden cameras in the changing rooms of the shop he worked in. The toothy grin he’s been giving me the entire time I’ve been here makes me feel paranoid, like I’m one of the people he’s got on tape. Even though Detective Greene’s assured me that he’s from the next town over, my faith in the changing rooms of the world cannot be restored.

“The one’s whose been eyeing me like I’m a piece of meat. I’m starting to feel pretty violated if you ask me.” He shivers and once again I find myself rolling my eyes at him.

“Hey don’t get all cocky, mister, I’m the one he’s been staring at!”

“Are you blind? It’s obvious that he’s been drooling over me, can you blame the guy?”

“Are you for real? Haven’t you seen the way he’s been smiling at me all this time?"

“More like death glaring, he obviously doesn’t like you being this close to me,” he retorts, his face contorting into that of the arrogant prick that I’ve known my entire life.

“You conceited, big-headed, narcissistic . . .”

“Where is he?” I hear Mrs. Stone before I see her and promptly shut up. Cole’s face has gone pale as his eyes dart in the direction of the voice. He clutches the bars to his cell and whispers, “If she kills me in the slammer, tell the guys at school it was an ax murderer who finished me off.”

“Nothing more masculine than being high-heeled to death, is there, Coley Woley?” I grin evilly and rub my hands together as the telltale clicking of high heels become less distant. Watching Cole’s face fall as he waits for the unmatchable fury of Cassandra Stone is priceless. There aren’t many occasions when you see him like this. A big fat grin lights my face as I get a whiff of Cassandra’s designer perfume.

“Cole Grayson Stone, what the hell are you doing in prison?”

I chuckle and get up from the floor, giving her full room to yell at him as much as she wants. I'm dying for some popcorn right about now. Maybe Detective Greene will lend me some of his donuts...

“Discussing who the Peeping Tom creeper likes more?”

“Tessa, dear, how are you?” She gives me a warm smile when she catches my eye and I simply give her a thumbs-up in return, something tells me I shouldn’t be talking right now.

“Don’t give me all that nonsense! Do you realize how worrying it is to come out of surgery to find that your son’s been arrested for assault?” she yells, but due to her gentle, almost caressing, voice, it doesn’t have the kind of impact she wants.

Cole looks at her sheepishly. “Sorry, Mom.” I see her anger melt the second he calls her that, and you can see that she’s practically already forgiven him. That’s the thing I’ve always loved about Jay’s mom. Ever since she married Cole’s dad when both boys were six, she’s treated Cole like her own flesh and blood. I know for a fact that Cole loves her just as much even though he tries not to show it. Cassandra is a wonderful woman and gorgeous as all hell; tall, blond, and absolutely stunning—it’s not really difficult to tell where Jay gets his good looks from.

“No, the mom thing isn’t going to work unless you tell me why you’re here.”

He groans and scratches the back of his neck. “Can’t you just bail me out first? I don’t think I can stand that guy staring at me for another second.”

“Oh for the love of God, he isn’t staring at you.”

“You’re just jealous.”

I’m this close to strangling him; if he opens his mouth one more time I swear to all that is pure and good I’m going to...

“Are you two really having this conversation?” Cassandra asks and it looks like she’s holding back a laugh. My cheeks heat up in embarrassment as I realize that we just started arguing in front of his mother.

“Tessie’s a little different, Mom,” he whispers theatrically. “Her parents haven’t told her about the time she got dropped accidentally and rolled down two flights of stairs.”

“Oh, I’ll give you brain damage.” I’m about to lunge for him, prison bars or no bars, but once again Cassandra’s subtle coughing makes me realize that I can't attack him while we’re at a police station. That would be pretty ironic, though, wouldn’t it?

“You two always were so adorable together.” Her eyes twinkle with amusement as she looks between her stepson and me. Cole gives me an annoying smirk and it’s scary how I know immediately what it means. He’s celebrating the fact that we’ve distracted Cassandra and is giving me a virtual high-five. She then shakes her head lightly and turns back to Cole, placing her hands on her hips and giving him her best “bad cop” look. He squirms under her gaze and refuses to meet her eye.

“Well, I’m waiting. Would you tell me why you hit that kid?”

Kid? Hank isn’t a kid! He’s a monster that deserves to go back to the gutter he crawled out from.

“Hit would be putting it mildly, Mrs. Stone. Your boy here went to town with his fists. Luckily someone managed to break up the fight or the other one wouldn’t have been able to recover.”

I look up to see the new addition to our little party and find that it’s Detective Greene with a bunch of papers in his hands. Cassandra scans them thoroughly before signing them. While she’s busy Cole gives me a victorious smile and I smile back, feeling warm all over. I haven’t thought about Hank at all since we arrived at the station but it really is wondrous that his injuries still don’t allow him to go home. Frankly I feel really good about that.

“Please call me Cassandra, John. Will this be all? Can I take my delinquent home?”

For someone’s who has just had to bail her son out of jail, she’s surprisingly okay with it. It makes me think that maybe incidents like this happen often. Then again, I feel as though Cassandra needs to play the good cop given how Sheriff Stone has the tendency to go overboard with his parenting.

“You sure can, but try to keep a leash on him for me, will you, or the next time I’m calling up the sheriff. You realize that the only reason he isn’t facing anything is because the other guy refused to press charges, and because of whose kid he is. I don’t know what you said to the principal, either, because I haven't gotten any calls from the school again. But he got very, very lucky this time, if you ask me."

“I don’t miss the hint of panic on Cole’s face as his father is mentioned and neither does Cassandra, she positively beams at Detective Greene and pats his arm. “I’m sure my husband doesn’t need to be bothered by some childish spat at school. Isn’t he investigating the Carson homicide? He doesn’t need the distraction, John, so we’ll keep this between us, right?”

He seems to be absolutely enchanted by Cassandra and all the poor guy can manage is a hardly noticeable nod. When his deputy comes and unlocks Cole’s cell, the man’s still in a trance. Cole pinches his cheeks. “It was a pleasure to be here, John, maybe I’ll come visit soon.”

This earns him a slap on the back of his head by his stepmother, who to his utter humiliation grabs him by the ear and drags him outside, yelping and all. I follow suit since she’s my ride and scurry behind them as she thanks the various officers. I quickly take my place in the backseat of her Ford but don’t miss the argument she’s having with Cole once all the cops have left. I feel guilty. I feel so incredibly guilty for all of this, but things have just gotten so out of control, and I just couldn't have seen any of this coming.

Things spiraled out of control after I told Cole about the party incident. The moment school ended Cole tracked down Hank. The one-sided fight that ensued in the parking lot will definitely go down in history as the shortest and bloodiest.  
For all his talk and rather intimidating, ape-like appearance, Hank was more like a little kitten when it came to combat. One punch and the waste of space was writhing on the ground begging for mercy. I shiver as I remember the almost-possessed look on Cole’s face as he threw punch after punch until Hank’s face was a bloody mess. He’d stopped not due to my incessant yelling but because the principal had shown up. I suspect he’d only called the cops to make a point and not exactly press charges against Cole. It’s a well-known fact that money and power rule at our school, which is why this whole situation feels like a joke. Cole’s not here because he risks facing a sentence but because the principal had to show some kind of authority to save face.

Which is how we’d ended up at the police station. I’d gotten a ride from Meghna, and after promising to tell them the full story later on, I forced them to leave. Meghna’s parents wouldn’t take too kindly to their daughter spending time in a jail.

The slamming shut of doors snaps me out of my thoughts. Cole’s taken the front seat next to Mrs. Stone and is trying to explain to her why he had to beat Hank to a pulp. I wish he could tell her the truth but he wouldn’t. He doesn’t want to embarrass me or drag me into this. That’s just the kind of guy he’s turning out to be.

“Fine, if you want to keep this a big secret then you’ll have to suffer the consequences. You’re grounded for a month. That means no TV, no Internet, and no Xbox. You will also be taking over all of Jay’s chore nights, which means washing the dishes, taking out the trash, and cleaning the toilets.”

He doesn’t protest.

“Mrs. Stone,” I start, and Cole whirls his head around to give me a wide-eyed stare. I think he’s assuming that I’m going to come clean and tell her about the party. But the last thing I want is for an adult to get involved- especially one as caring and protective as Cassandra.

I ignore his warning looks and continue after taking a deep breath, “Please don’t be so harsh on him, he was only trying to help me.”

She looks at my image in the rearview mirror, her brows furrowing in confusion. “What do you mean, sweetie?”

“Hank, you know, the guy he beat up, he was bullying me and it was getting a little out of hand.” Cole scoffs at my use of the word little but I carry on, tugging at the sleeves of my sweater. “He only hit him because he was picking on me.”

Cassandra gasps looking aghast. “Bullying? Why didn’t you tell me this before? Have you told the principal? How long has this been going on, Tessa?”

The bullying? About four years.

“It’s very recent. What Hank did, it was the first time I’ve ever experienced it,” I say earnestly and I can almost feel Cole rolling his eyes at that one.

“Still, you should’ve told me the second I walked into the station. Never mind now, I’ll talk to your principal first thing in the morning.”

“No, seriously, Mrs. Stone, there’s no need. I’m pretty sure Hank won’t do it again,” I plead, not wanting this to turn into something bigger than it's already become. Cole’s not getting suspended for the fighting, though, since a very bloody Hank lying on his stretcher had told the principal that he provoked Cole and that it was his fault. But I have a feeling that the Stones would be donating heavily to the school. I’d been there with Travis, I know what money is capable of and in this case, it’s a miracle that Cole isn’t facing suspension or worse, expulsion.

“You don’t know that for sure, maybe all he needs is a little talk with an authority figure and he’ll never pull such a stunt again.”

“With all due respect, I think what Cole did to him was more than enough,” I say quietly and to my utter surprise both mother and son start chuckling at my words, Cassandra even looking at Cole fondly like she’s proud of him.

“Well, this sure changes things, but you’re still being punished, Cole, violence is not the answer to these problems. I’ll let you off with two weeks of grounding and you can watch TV for an hour, but that’s it.”

He grins at her, looking pretty smug. “I’ll take it. In other words, I’ll sneak out of the house when you’re sleeping, Mommy.

Cassandra drops us at her house since she has to rush back to the hospital. I glance at my watch and almost scream when I see that it’s nearly nine, long past the time I needed to be home. The blood drains from my face; I’m going to have to come up with a good explanation.

“You look like Casper, only whiter and blonder.” This is Cole’s brilliant observation as we stand on the front porch. I’m panicking slightly, digging through my satchel to find my phone, which I’d completely forgotten about in all the panic. I unlock the screen only to find that there are no calls or texts from my parents. Should I be happy or depressed about this? Decisions, decisions. There is, however, a text from Beth saying that she called my mom and told her that I was at her house working on a project. I make a mental note to buy her that The Doors T-shirt she’s been eyeing for so long for what she’s done.

Then I turn to Cole.

“Thank you, for what you did today. You shouldn’t have gone to all that trouble. I- I was going to do something about it. I was. But then you know, you..."

I surprise us both by hugging him. The kind of gratitude I’m feeling can’t be expressed by words. He needs to know what it is that he’s done for me. The fact that he went out of his way to ensure my safety and to get me the justice I needed, I’m absolutely floored.

His smell swarms my senses as my face is buried in his shoulder and his in the crook of my neck. Before I know what I’m doing I take one big whiff of his neck since I’m addicted to his scent. His arms are tight around me and with the way we’re pressed together, the only things providing some distance are his too-thin wife-beater and my light knit sweater. I can feel the furious beating of his heart. It thrills me to know that it could be for me.

I breathe slowly through my nose and very gently and carefully guide my hands over his back until they rest on his shoulder blades, gripping fistfuls of his shirt. I don’t miss the slight shiver that passes through his body at my touch and once again I feel confused. Am I the one doing this to him? I try not overthinking for once, dismissing his reaction to the chill in the air and my freezing hands; yes, that explains it.

We stand there holding on to each other for what seems at the same time like centuries and seconds. Slowly I begin to pull away, untangling our bodies, but that still doesn’t provide enough space. Our faces are centimeters apart and I can feel his minty fresh breath fan my face. Consciously I reach for the hair that’s falling all over my eyes but, lightning fast, Cole’s hand reaches them before mine could. He tucks the stray strands behind my ear and smiles at me warmly. It feels like the best part of this whirlwind of a day.

***

To no one’s surprise Cole decides to walk me home even though he’s bruised and battered. Also to no one’s surprise, my darling mother invites him in for dinner the moment she sees us standing on the doorstep. Nerves filled my stomach and were acting up despite things being less chaotic now. I ate as much as I could muster and then excused myself, leaving my mother chatting animatedly to Cole. Desperate for a shower, I let the hot water ease the day’s damage done to my muscles and lather and rinse and scrub thoroughly, wanting to get all the grime off of me. Changing into the sweats hanging behind my bathroom door, I walk into my room feeling extremely tired.

And there he is, rocking back and forth on his heels as he stands outside my door.  
“If you’ve come this far Cole, you might as well come in.”

I stifle a yawn and settle down in bed. “Weren’t you leaving?” I roll onto my side facing him. He eyes are cast downward. When he doesn’t answer I call out to him again.  
It’s as if he’s gone into shock and the events of the day are catching up to him. I get out of bed, genuinely concerned about him. He’s had his eyes on me all day, making sure I was okay but who was looking out for him?

“What’s going on? Did you want to say something?”

After a few minutes of painful silence, he exhales like it’s painful for him to breathe.

“You shouldn’t feel the need to hide something like that, Tessie. I keep thinking about what would have happened if Annie hadn’t come to me.”

I flinch, since I didn’t expect the conversation to head this way.

“Why are we even having this conversation? It’s all in the past right? What’s done is done. I’m never going to see Hank again so let’s just not talk about it.”

My heart’s racing under the scrutiny of his blue-eyed gaze. There’s fire in them and I want to look away but it’s like I’m trapped.

“You never mentioned it to your best friends or your parents. Tessie . . . please let people in. It couldn’t have been easy for you and to have to go through it alone.” He growls, “I can’t imagine the pain you were in. I can’t believe Nicole could sink so low.”

I’m twisting my hands feeling highly uncomfortable, wanting nothing more than to get out of this situation but Cole’s eyes pierce mine with so much intensity that I just want to duck under my blanket and hide before he finds out all my secrets. Knowing that he’s so attuned to my feelings is heartwarming but the more he cares, the more difficult it is for me to define our relationship. Feelings are getting mixed up, the lines are blurring. I can’t just slot him into one category now and I don’t know how to deal with it.

“Please don’t kill Nicole.” I blurt out the first thing I can think of and watch his face scrunch in confusion.

“I know she’s horrible and mean and sometimes you just want to run her over with a tank, but you can’t murder her! You’ll get into so much trouble. I mean I know your father’s the sheriff and mine’s the mayor and maybe they could pull some strings to get you out, but I’ve seen the show! It’ll probably mean some poor guy named Stan will be arrested instead and he’ll get a life sentence. He’ll probably have a wife and three kids at home if you..."

It’s a desperate attempt to change the topic and I know Cole sees right through it but he humors me anyway. My rambling’s stopped when Cole slaps a hand over my mouth. He looks at me strangely for a few seconds before he starts laughing so hard that tears spring to his eyes. His hand’s still firmly placed over my mouth but then he crumples on the floor clutching his stomach and laughing his useless backside off. His laughter is infectious and maybe it’s just the kind of day that I’ve had that’s hitting me but I start laughing as well, nearly hysterical. I fall on my bed and laugh till tears stream down my face. His laughter dies as he wipes his eyes and stands up.

“Where do you get that stuff from?” He sounds a little breathless and raspy from all that laughing.

“You don’t have to rub it in, you know.” I’m finding it difficult to catch my own breath.

“Oh come on, Tessie, I was just . . .”

“Being a jerk?”

“Being human. That was some serious gibberish you were spouting there.”

“You could’ve been less mean about it.” I’m pouting but he can’t see.

“Okay, I’m sorry. I promise the next time you get verbal diarrhea I’ll slap you before it gets too bad.”

“How can I ever thank you?” I say dryly and snuggle down into my pillow, making it obvious that I’m done talking to him. I switch off the lamp on my bedside table and we’re shrouded in darkness. I feel his weight settling next to me. “Hey, shortcake,” he whispers into the darkness. I debate for a few seconds whether to reply or not then decide that I want to hear whatever he has to say.

“Yeah?” I murmur just as softly.

“I’m here for you, always. I know it’s hard to believe but anytime you feel like you need a friend, I hope you think of me. And if you need my help getting rid of Nicole’s body, I have my resources.”

I can’t help but laugh.

It’s strange how I almost had no one to look after me for a long time. I’m not really used to someone having my back. More unnerving is the fact that this person is Cole. Had someone told me this when I was fifteen I would have laughed at them. I probably would've called them delusional, and then laughed some more.

“Whatever you want, Stone.”

Then I kick him out and crash immediately.


	12. Chapter Eleven: I Think Cole Is A Sex God

I am not a violent person; in fact, I pride myself on my ability to calmly accept any acts of oppression that Nicole and her minions might feel like bestowing upon me for the day. My Irish grandfather tells me that I’m a disappointment to the family, that I skipped the famous fiery temperament that my maternal side possesses. But sometimes, good lord, sometimes it really does come out and that sometime would be now.

“Shortcake.” Poke.

I ignore him and spoon some spaghetti into my mouth.

“Hey, shortcake.” Poke again.  
  
I swirl my fork in the spaghetti with a bored expression on my face and cup my chin, with my elbow resting on the lunch table. Letting out a long and dramatically exaggerated sigh I turn to Beth, who’s sitting at my side.

“Did you get started on that history assignment? I’ve been trying to jot down some points for my essay but it’s all so confusing.”

I never talk to Beth about homework, mostly because she’s not a big fan of it. She’s the girl who leaves it to the absolute last minute, and most of the time it’s a mad dash by the three of us to get her assignments completed on time. Why then, you may wonder, am I talking about an essay which doesn’t even exist? I’ve decided to go down the old-fashioned route and am giving Cole the much-needed silent treatment. He literally had me ambushed by our calculus teacher, Mr. Goodwin, today to get me to tutor him for an upcoming test. I know for a fact that he’s probably smarter than me, so his motives for depriving me of any free time I might possibly have seem questionable.

Beth looks at me uncertainly and then her eyes flick toward Cole, who’s frowning at me. She seems unsure of what to say since there’s no essay, but I am thankful for the day she stepped into my life since she catches on pretty quick.

“Uh yeah, the essay...umm, I’m working on it too and it’s hard...I can’t help you, sorry?” She poses this as a question and I realize that she’s as bad of a liar as I am. Cole is a professional, and he's not buying what we’re trying to sell.  
“Shortcake, come on, why are you mad?” He leans forward on the table and rests his arms on it. I avoid looking at him and turn to Megan, who’s sitting on my other side. It’s no use talking to her since she’s got her physics textbook out and is prepping for a quiz we have after lunch. She already knows everything and she’s been studying for it every day since our teacher announced the quiz. Plus it looks like I’m not the only person who’s a little agitated due to her studiousness. I find the next person I can’t chat to and blatantly ignore Cole in front of me.

“So, Alex, how was your summer?”

He looks a bit uncomfortable and gazes at me like I’ve lost my mind. I don’t blame the guy, I have never spoken to him in my entire life even though I’ve known him for as long as I’ve known Cole. When Megan and Beth told me about an Alex, I couldn’t have imagined it to be him. He’s Alex Hastings, the only close friend and non-lackey that Cole has. They’re partners in crime and I cannot count the number of times the two of them have teamed up to pull some prank on me. He’s started to sit with us fairly recently, seeing how he just got back from Europe.

Now he seems besotted with my redheaded best friend.

“It was pretty good, Tessa, umm, how was yours?”

“It was fun, Beth here had to go to live at her aunt’s, but Megan and I did a lot of crazy stuff, didn’t we?” I nudge her slightly to make her look up from her book but all she graces us with is a slight nod of the head.

“What do you like to do for fun?” Alex asks but I know he wants my clueless friend to answer his question. I nudge her harder this time and kick her from under the table until she drops her book with a yelp. Glaring at me she picks up the enormous textbook, but I grab it from her before she can bury herself in it again. I give her a pointed look that screams, “Stop ignoring the cute guy who’s into you!” and she turns red.

Alex is still looking our way. To my dismay, so is Cole, but the slightly amused expression on his face is scaring me.

“I’m sorry, what was your question?” Megan asks politely but she sounds both breathless and flustered.

She likes him! Hallelujah. Beth and I share a victorious look and return to watching how this plays out.

Alex seems taken aback by the fact that the girl who’s been ignoring him all week is suddenly paying attention. At first he seems equally nervous but then he flashes her his trademark smile and Megan just seems to come under his spell. We watch in silence as he flirts shamelessly with her and she utters one-worded starstruck responses. It’s all so cute to watch, I just want to pinch their cheeks and then get them married.

Cole’s hypnotizing eyes zoom in on me as the bell rings, signaling the end of lunch. Alex walks Megan to class and Beth heads out to the other side of campus for her own. I try to make my escape before he catches me since I plan on fully ignoring him for a bit longer but he’s like a predator circling me and just waiting to pounce.

“So you’re not going to talk to me?” He stands in front of me. The lunch room is slowly starting to empty as people head to their classes.

I try to move past Cole but he stands his ground. A finger placed beneath my chin tilts my head up so that I’m looking him right in the eye and boy, is my view fantastic. He’s got the most amazing eyes I’ve ever seen, the blue in them almost radiates this mind-numbing power that turns you to jelly the moment you look into them.

“You’re going to just stand there and let me do this?” He doesn’t take his eyes away from mine as he places his hand on my waist, his thumb brushing against the small strip of skin on my stomach that visible through my tank top. The cafeteria is nearly empty, but I can see people glancing at us curiously as they leave.

Well, _glancing_ is a bit of an understatement. I see jaws dropping and eyes coming out of their sockets as people openly stare at the two of us. Most of them just stand rooted to their spots for a few beats before they then have the decency to move once they realize that no one’s getting naked anytime soon. Then I realize what’s actually happening and freeze. Shiver after shiver passes through my body as his hands never leave their teasing movements. I should stop this. I don’t care about the darn silent treatment, I should really stop this.

But I just don’t want to.

I watch him lean into me, placing his lips next to my ear.

“If I do will you tell me to stop?” He lightly nibbles at my ear and an involuntary gasp escapes my mouth. His thumb’s rubbing dizzying circles at the side of my waist and his lips are too close. I can feel his warm breath all over my face but the thing is, he never stops looking at me.

“Speak up, Tessie, tell me what you want.”

I don’t want you to stop, but I can’t say that to you.

“You should really ask me to end this,” he murmurs huskily and I just about lose it. His lips hover over mine, his hand’s pushed up my top just the slightest bit, and his fingers are gently skimming over the sensitive skin, making me feel like firecrackers are exploding inside of me. His touch is light as he pushes his hands beneath my top, his cold fingers tickling my skin. They brush up my stomach gently toward my ribcage, if he goes any further . . .

“Cole!” He drops his hands and backs away just a little. He’s staring at me as I lean against the table, pressing my hands on top of it so that I don’t collapse. The words haven’t come out of my mouth since the sensible part of me has packed up and decided to vacate the premises.

Cole’s looking at me intently and I think he thinks that I am the one who spoke up. Then he realizes that I’m too dazed to actually form a coherent sentence so turns his back toward me and I wish he hadn’t.

I see her before he does and I notice the expression on her face before she masks it for Cole’s sake. Nicole’s mad and she really wants me to know it. Her eye is twitching, her mouth is pulled up into a vicious sneer, and she’s tapping her fake Louboutin-clad foot furiously on the ground. If she had laser vision I’d be obliterated by now.

“Nicole?” Cole asks as he turns to her, hiding me behind his back in what I can only assume is a protective gesture, one I’m extremely grateful for.

“What are you two doing here?” she asks in a sickly sweet voice that makes me want to hurl. Ms. Bishop clearly has an agenda, an agenda that involves being so fake that she could've have been manufactured in China.

“I don’t see how that’s any of your business,” Cole replies briskly, and I squeeze his arm in warning. He can _not _let Nicole know that he’s aware of what she tried to do to me. If she figures out that I squealed, I’m surely as good as dead.

“The principal just called for a special assembly for us seniors, and since I’m class president. I’m supposed to get everyone together.” Her voice is still dripping with pretense and the way she’s batting her eyelashes at Cole is sickening.

Doesn’t she have a boyfriend?

“Thanks for the concern, we’ll be right there.” His voice is tight as he answers her and I know Nicole isn’t too pleased with how things are working out at the moment. She’s never been denied a guy’s attention. Even Jay, the one guy I thought wouldn’t go for looks, fell for her and shoved me into a corner.

He’s basically asked her to get the hell out but it looks like she’s a bit slow on the uptake. When Cole turns back to me, she takes the opportunity to glare at me some more before twirling around, flipping her hair over her shoulder and stomping away. I bite back a laugh realizing that not only is she majorly ticked off but she still has a crush on Cole. After all this time she still likes him and he still couldn’t care less.

“That was awesome!” I grin at him and he gives a genuine dimpled smile in return before it turns into his signature smirk.

“Oh, now you want to talk to me? You didn’t look too eager before.”

I blush, realizing what he’s referring to, and don’t know why I never stopped his hands from roaming my body. Right now I cannot think of one witty thing to say to him because the truth is that that I liked it.

Silly, right?

***

After school, Cole drives me back to his house for some “tutoring.” I’m trying to figure out what game he’s playing since he doesn’t need my help.

I shudder at the over-the-top theories as Cole parks in his driveway and opens my door for me. He looks far too enthusiastic for my liking and by the time we enter his house and head for his room, I’m growing a little wary. Since it’s about four in the afternoon, Sheriff Stone is at the station and Cassandra is at the hospital. The only other person that could be here with us is Jay but thank God I don’t see him as we pass by his room.

Cole’s unpacked his boxes and his room looks somewhat normal now. The space is much cleaner and homier. I take a seat on the leather couch he’s placed across from his bed and beneath the windowsill. He’s gone downstairs to make us something to eat, and since I don’t want to cause an explosion, I’ve decided to stay away from the kitchen. Taking out my books from my bag, I decide to start working on my homework but something’s off. I feel too distracted to do anything school-related. My mind keeps reeling back to and playing those few moments when Cole and I were nearer than we should have been. It’s not right, not right that I like having him so close to me. I can’t like him like that, especially when I’m so hung up over his brother. It’s just physical attraction, that’s it. However grudgingly I do admit that he’s hot and those eyes of his...

I shake my head to get rid of my wayward thoughts. If I allow myself to come to terms with my attraction toward him, then I’ll also have to admit that he’s not the Cole that left our town three years ago. Ever since he’s come back he’s made my life so much easier. He might annoy me, get on my nerves and frustrate me, but in the end. I don’t really hate the fact that he’s back.

“Why are you so quiet?” Cole notices my silence over two bowls of steaming tomato soup and plates of grilled cheese.  
I don’t want to tell him that it’s getting really awkward sitting here with him, when all my mind is in the mood for is replaying that moment in the cafeteria. Like the girl I am, I’m overthinking and it’s probably showing on my face.  
Would he have kissed me?

I remember what happened at the pool and once again I question what could’ve happened if Jay hadn’t showed up. Would we have kissed? Would I have let him?

“Tessie?” Cole’s hand on my shoulder allows me to realize that I’ve zoned out. He’s looking at me worriedly and I see concern in his eyes, something I’m still not used to.

“What?” I try to be inconspicuous about the fact that I clearly haven’t been listening to a word he’s said so far.

“Are you okay?”

“Why wouldn’t I be?”

“Well, you look a little dazed. That must have been some daydream.” He winks.

“Trust me when I say you didn’t star in it.” I say dryly and go back to my food. We’re sitting cross-legged on his bedroom floor with textbooks and notes scattered all around us. I’ve tried asking him why he’s purposely failing calculus, but he seems intent on lying. Though even when I did give up and offer to teach him something, he wouldn’t look at his book. Instead I’d catch him staring at me and my stomach would erupt with butterflies.

“So now that you’re done daydreaming about me, have you thought more about what you want to do to Nicole?”

“I wasn't daydreaming!”

"You were looking at me with hearts in your eyes; I’d say you came pretty close to it.”

I nearly snarl in protest even though he’s nearly hit the nail on the head.

“Please, like I’d ever be interested in you.”

He moves his dishes to the side and scoots closer to me. As he nears me there’s a mischievous glint in his eyes.

“You want to try saying that again?”

He’s so near once again and my heart’s just going crazy. I need to get away from him before I have a heart attack.

“I . . . I—I—”

“Think Cole is a sex god.” He smirks and moves away, just giving me enough space to let out the breath I’ve been holding for so long.

“You don’t need to say something for me to hear it, Tessie. I got you, we’ve got that mind reading thing down pat.”

I nod stupidly before realizing that he’s a pompous imbecile! I lunge for him as he sprawls on the floor cackling. I move over him and try kicking him, hitting him, doing anything that would retract my stupid nod but the damage is already done. He keeps laughing as I sweep all my things into my bag and give him one parting glance. He straightens up once he sees I’m leaving and tries returning to sobriety but he can only hold in his laughter for so long.

“Come on, shortcake; don’t get mad, I was kidding.” He then places his fist against his mouth, I presume to hold in the laughter. I narrow my eyes at him one last time, swing my bag over my shoulder and walk right out his door. His footsteps alert me that he’s following, much like the stalker he is. However, it’s not him that causes me to halt in my tracks. It's something else.

I pause at the top of the stairs, causing Cole to run into my back. He opens his mouth to curse but I place my hand over his lips and give a pointed look at Jay, who’s on the phone with someone. I don’t want to run by him since I haven’t actually prepared myself to face him. After our argument, he’s made many subtle attempts to try to speak to me but I keep ignoring him. His words still sting and whenever I remember that day, I still feel a twinge of anger and hurt.

“Yeah, man, I’m really going to have to work to get that scholarship. The last thing I need is to end up a fucking loser like Travis O’Connell.”

His words resonate around me like he’s screaming them. I don’t know what exactly it is that I’m feeling right now. I feel hurt; that’s the easiest emotion to pinpoint. The best thing to do would be to stop listening and run away while I can, but a bigger part of me wants to stay here and listen to what else he has to say.

“Tessie,” Cole starts, his eyes once again full of concern, but I shoot him a warning look, telling him to butt out of this.

“That guy’s a total screwup. He had everything and he lost it because he was too stupid to write a paper.”

He listens to what the other person has to say before a smirk crosses his face. “I wonder if Jenny’s still single. She’s just a couple of years older and man, she used to be so hot.”

I feel sick, I feel so sick listening to him talk about all the things he’d like to do to my brother’s ex, the bitch that broke his heart and then stomped all over it.

“Tessie, come on; let’s get you out of here,” Cole whispers but it’s like I can’t move. I look at Jay and I see someone I’ve never met before. He’s a completely new person, an ugly person, a person who is rude and mean and insensitive.

Cole tugs at my arm again and this time succeeds in pulling me away from Jay before I attack him with a cleaver. No one insults my brother but me. No one.

Not even Jason Stone.

I hide out in Cole’s room, waiting till the coast is clear and I can leave. Like I said before, I’m not a violent person but right now I want to punch Jay in the face so bad.

“He crossed a line; he shouldn’t have said all that. I’m sorry, shortcake.”

Cole’s kneeling down in front of me, holding my hands in his and rubbing his calloused thumbs over my knuckles. It’s surprising how he’s the one comforting me and that it’s working. I can feel myself calm down and my murderous thoughts are dwindling to plain old anger. I let out a bitter laugh. “I know a lot of people think that Travis is a loser, but I never thought Jay would be one of them.”

He sighs and now places both of my hands in both of his, interlacing our fingers. “You think you know him. but he’s not Mr. Perfect, Tessie. He’s a good guy but he’s got flaws too. Flaws you don’t want to see.”

I agree with him but don’t voice it out loud. He's right- all my life I've placed Jay on such a high pedestal that finding out he’s not all that great is hard to stomach. It’s the shattering of a decade-old image. and it hurts like hell.

“Come, I’ll take you home.” He gives me a tentative smile, one which I return even though my heart’s not quite up to it.

Maybe I’ve been obsessed with the wrong Stone brother all this time.


	13. Chapter Twelve: I’m Not The Love Child Of Edward Cullen And Tinker Bell

“Travis!” I bang on my brother’s door, not relenting like I have in the past.

Nothing—there’s no response. It’s around seven in the evening and he’s passed out, drunk as ever. It’s been the same for so long that I cannot remember a day when I have had the opportunity to have a decent conversation with him. We had a great relationship, right from the beginning. He wasn’t the kind of brother who liked to pick on me or annoy me- I already had Cole for that. Travis was someone I looked up to. He was someone who took care of me whenever my parents forgot to. He was the single reason why I’d never been bullied throughout much of my school life. No one messed with Travis Chen's little sister, but I guess that novelty only lasts till you lose your brother to the bottle.

“Travis,” I yell again and pound at his door even more furiously. Jay’s words ring in my head as I try to keep my rage at bay. Whatever I may feel for Jay does not in any way allow me to ignore the fact that he basically trashed my brother and blew whatever dignity that remained into smithereens. It’s the most difficult thing ever to come to the realization that the boy who I thought could do no wrong would actually have such an ugly side to him.

Cole is right. While I never expected myself to ever admit this, I do realize that he has a very valid and fair point. I put Jay on a pedestal, I considered him flawless and I let myself think that he was perfect. Guess I should’ve realized that anyone who dates Nicole couldn’t possibly be completely right in the head. Her ugliness is the kind that seeps into whomever is close enough.

“What!” My brother screams in my face as he throws his door open.

He looks angry, annoyed, and, above all, hungover. His eyes have huge bags beneath them, his breath stinks of alcohol, and he has two days’ worth of stubble on his face. My twenty-one-year-old brother looks far older than that. There’s no light in his eyes. It hasn't been there in two long, long years now, and I'm struck with a sudden wave of longing.  
I miss the old Travis and I need to get him back. I need to show people like Jay that my brothers not a lost cause.

In what I suppose is an intimidating manner I place my hands on my hips and tilt my head up to glare at my six foot two brother, who’s currently rubbing the sleep from his eyes. He’s still wearing the clothes he must have put on before heading out last night; it’s a miracle he didn’t sleep with his shoes on.

“What do you want?” He grumbles before stumbling back into his bedroom. None of the lights are on in his room, lending it a certain cave-like charm. Pizza boxes are scattered all across the wooden floor, and spent beer cans litter the remaining visible space.

“I want you to clean up and then meet me in the kitchen,” I order with authority in my voice but he flops back down into his bed and pulls the covers over his head in an attempt to drive me away. I narrow my eyes at him and tug at the duvet until it falls to the floor.

“What the hell is your problem, Tess?” He grabs a pillow and throws it in my direction, I duck and for the first time in my life my hand-eye coordination doesn’t fail me.

“My problem is that I’m sick of seeing you like this, Trav! Please, just hear me out once. Take a shower or something, I don't care. I need to talk to you when you’re sober.”

He’s taken by surprise and honestly, so am I. In the past couple of years we’ve drifted apart. We went from having the perfect brother-sister relationship to hardly acknowledging each other even though we live in the same house. He stopped looking out for me, so I became an easy target and I stopped caring about him so he’s been destroying his liver.

“Is everything okay?” He’s still slurring his words and his eyes are drooping. Disappointment shoots through me as I realize that this is the person he’s become. From having everything one minute to being reduced to nothing the next has taken its toll on Travis. Seeing him like this further strengthens my resolve to get his life back on track.

In a sudden display of affection, I sit by his side on the bed and ruffle his black hair so like mine; his brown eyes concentrate on my face as I smile sadly at him.

  
“I just need my big brother right now.”

***

My mother’s spoon slips from her fingers and clatters to the ground. My father is forced to put down his glass of wine and I smile widely as Travis pulls up a chair next to me and sits down at the dining table.

Shock. The single emotion is plastered onto both their faces as they watch their son sit and eat with them for the first time in years. Mom’s mouth hangs open in the most unladylike of ways and Dad looks like he’s going to start choking on the wine he just put down. It’s priceless, seeing them like this and knowing that I somehow have a part in all this. It’s been three days since I confronted Travis and our talk went really, really well. I’d been able to get through to him by reminding him that this family needed him, and that he needed to come back to us.

“Travis?” My mother finally manages to croak as she stares at him like he’s a foreign creature and not her son.

“Hey, Mom.” He disarms her with a single crooked grin and her eyes widen. I know how she’s feeling, since it’s been a really long time since we've seen Travis in good spirits. The fact that he’s smiling and being so nonchalant about all of this is kind of creepy but I’m not complaining. At least I’m going to get my brother back this way.

He’s helping himself to some lasagna and Dad still hasn’t said a word. He’s just staring at him, much like our mother, but even she’s managed to get herself under control.

“Can I help you with something, Dad?” Travis asks with an edge to his voice.

I start to panic just a little. My brother and father don’t exactly have the best relationship. Dad didn’t take well to Travis’s little crash-and-burn experience. He practically disowned him and my brother’s never quite gotten over the desertion. Now, watching them having a stare-down, I realize that it's going to take some time to fix this.

“Just surprised to see you leave the bottle.” His snide remark has me wanting to pour my glass of Coke all over his head. This is not the time for settling old scores-we need to show Travis that we love him and support him, and from the way my father’s looking at hi, you can’t exactly see any rainbows and unicorns. Instead, I see the steely cold and calculating gaze which I’ve become accustomed to in the past four years.

“Dad,” I begin in a warning tone and Mom darts her eyes nervously between the three of us. She looks a little panicked, never one for confrontations. This must be taking its toll on her nerves.

He raises his palms defensively and looks at me innocently. “I’m only stating the obvious, honey.”

“You haven’t changed a bit, have you, Dad,” Travis says through gritted teeth. I can see his anger rising- the famous Cantonese temperament that I didn’t inherit is rising to the surface.

“Well, we all can’t stop living our normal lives and become alcoholics, can we now?” he says calmly before returning to his food.

Okay, that’s it. One more word from him and he’s going to be drenched in fizzy goodness.

“You know what," Travis shoots up from his seat, throwing his napkin on the floor. "Screw this.” Before I can say or do anything to stop him, he stomps out of the room without glancing back. I know I need to let him cool off before the next round of our family feud.

“Now, now, don’t make this about me. Your brother had that coming.”

“Oh for the love of God, _Ri Xian_, get off your high horse and apologize to your son.” My mom looks like Mama Bear with her claws out as she glares murderously at Papa Jerk Face Bear.

“I have nothing to apologize for, _Yu Qing._ He deserved it,” Dad says tersely, and I grunt in aggravation. It doesn't matter if I love or don't love him, but if he says one more word about Travis, he is going to suffer.

“If you don’t go up to his room right now, you can forget about my father supporting you in the elections. We all know how fond he is of his grandson and if he hears about this, sweetheart, well I’m sure you know what’s going to happen.”

I give my mom a virtual high-five. Never before have I been so proud of her and at this very second I do feel something akin to love swelling in my heart for her.

“Are you threatening me?”

Sometimes, Dad, you can be as dumb as a post and then some.

“Consider it more of a promise. Now go, and remember, be nice. I’ve got your ticket to victory on speed-dial.”

I will never forget the sight of watching him scurry up the stairs with panic and terror written all over his face. Mom winks at me and begins sipping her wine. It will need a lot of time and effort to get things with Travis back to normal- today’s a start, but things are going to get a little crazy in order to patch our family back up.

Oh, well. At least I have one big-headed, arrogant, narcissistic moron looking after me in all this.

***

I’m about to go to bed after completing my homework and arguing with Cole over texts about how it would not be the best idea to egg Jay’s car. It’s shallow and vindictive, plus he drives the most gorgeous Hummer and marring its beauty would be a crime against nature. I don’t really know if I want to retaliate, I mean Jay wasn’t exactly lying when he labeled Travis a loser. It hurt, it did, but I can’t stop him from having an opinion, now can I?

Cole sure feels differently about the situation. I’m actually feeling extremely afraid for Jay- if I were him, I’d flee the hemisphere and start a new life.

“Tessa, honey? Are you free?” I put my iPod away as my mother walks into the room, grinning and holding a garment bag in her hands. My eyebrows pull together as she lays it carefully on the bed and looks at it like it’s her third child.

“Mom, what’s this?” I begin warily. It’s never a good thing when her eyes sparkle like this or when she looks this happy about something.

“This is your dress for our annual charity gala,” she gushes as she begins to unzip the bag. “I wore this when I was eighteen and I won Ms. Farrow Hills in this.”

I stare at the taffeta abomination she pulls out. It’s the kind of dress I have nightmares about, the one I think I’ll end with by wearing it on my wedding day after Nicole’s destroyed the original. It’s ghastly neon pink with sequins all over the bodice and a big puffy skirt that seems endless.

Oh, hell.

"Isn’t it lovely?” she gushes as she places it against her body and looks at herself in my full-length mirror. In what world is that thing considered lovely?

"Mom, I’m not sure I even want to go to the gala, let alone enter the competition."

“Nonsense! You’re the mayor’s daughter, you have to be there and I’m the chair of the Ms. Farrow Hills committee. What will people think if they see that my own flesh and blood didn’t bother entering it?”

“I’m sure we can convince Travis to give it a shot,” I joke but she flinches like she’s been physically hurt.

“I’ve been planning for the event all year, Tessa. Why are you acting like this?”

I roll my eyes at her theatrics. “No need to be dramatic, Mom. I just don’t see the point. Nicole’s been preparing her whole life to win this thing. Why would I want to go up against her?”

She clicks her tongue and settles down on the bed, putting the monstrosity she calls a dress on the side. Pushing my bangs aside, she ruffles my hair and gives me the first motherly smile I’ve seen in ages. I bet it’s all because she wants me to enter her stupid competition.

“That girl is not what Ms. Farrow Hills is supposed to represent. We’re looking for someone who’s beautiful inside and out and that’s you, sweetie. I know you don’t see it, but you’re growing up to become such a wonderful young woman, and I'm so proud of you."

“Okay, who is she and what has she done to my snarky, antidepressant-popping mother?

“Mom, I . . . didn’t realize this means so much to you.”

“I know we haven’t had the best relationship these last couple of years but what you did today for your brother, it . . .” Tears spring to her eyes and I just sit there in amazement. I’ve never seen her cry or get emotional in front of me. Usually she has such hard walls all around her that it’s almost impossible to penetrate them but right now she’s displaying a very foreign vulnerability.

“It just reminded me how lucky I am to have you as my daughter.”

My throat feels thick as I try to get some words out but I cannot. To be honest, I’m not miraculously feeling an outburst of love for the woman who’s been neglecting me for as long as I can remember. When things became difficult she decided to leave me on my own and used prescription drugs as a refuge. It’s not exactly easy for me to welcome her back with open arms.

“Thanks, Mom.”

She looks disappointed with my answer but doesn’t push it. Instead she asks me to try on her dress. While I'd rather set myself on fire than do just that, I feel like we've made some real breakthroughs in our relationship tonight, and I can't let an aversion to pinky poof destroy it.

When I come out of my bathroom, I immediately cringe at the sight of myself in the mirror. The dress clashes horribly with my tan skin and the fitting is horrible. I don’t have the chest to fill it out nor do my legs go on for days, so it ends up pooling by my feet. The puffed sleeves make me look like a hunchback and the sequins prick my skin, making me squirm.

“Oh wow, Tess, you look . . .”

I can see her reflection in the mirror and shake my head at her. “Don’t, Mom, don’t.”

“You look wonderful, honey; we might need to fix it up a little but . . .”

“I look like a cross between Pippi Longstocking and Grandma Judith.”

“Well, that’s exaggerating it, it just needs a little work and . . .”

I turn around and breathe deeply. Fatty Tessie the pushover would have allowed her to get away with this just to please her and get her attention. However, Shortcake here has been spending a bit too much time with the town’s bad boy, and she isn’t about to back down.

“Mother,” I begin patiently and she looks at me expectantly, “I promise I will participate in the competition and try my best to win, but you _have_ to let me pick out my own dress."

She looks taken aback by my request and I’m not surprised. Usually I just let her have her own way with me and try to keep any arguments at bay. She’s not really used to me expressing an opinion or, well, doing anything that might hint at the fact that I do have a mind of my own.

“Oh, alright. That’s perfectly understandable. I’ll tell your partner about the change- I think the poor boy will be glad that he doesn’t have to wear a pink tie.”

My heart sinks at the very mention of the word.

“What partner?”

***

“Hey, partner.” Cole nudges my shoulder and I glare at him.

“Don’t look so smug, Stone. I didn't choose to be here.”

“When life gives you lemons, Tessie . . .” He trails off and starts his car, pulling away from his garage.

“You squeeze the life out of them and then throw them in the trash, genius,” I scoff.

From the corner of my eye I can see him grinning with amusement all over his face. I fight back a smile myself and turn my head so that I’m looking out the window.

“So are you okay?” he asks, and I guess he’s referring to the incident with Jay. I suppose that it’s all worked out for the better. Travis is struggling to change his routine and going back to normal but at least he’s making an effort now. I’ve talked him into registering for a couple of online courses and starting to work on his degree again. The alcohol consumption is still a problem but it’s hard for anyone to go cold turkey to an addiction.

“I’m better than okay, actually. For the first time it feels like my family is actually making progress.” I smile warmly at him and he seems a bit dazed at first, not responding but just staring at me.

“What?” I ask, feeling a little flustered.

“Nothing.” He shakes his head and then gives me that disarming smile that I’d been looking for.

“Nothing,” he repeats. “It's just that you should smile more often.”

I melt a little at his words and don’t even notice when he pulls on the highway, taking us out of town. We’re going to a mall two towns over to look for a dress for me. While I argued that I am perfectly capable of finding a dress for myself, he simply rolled his eyes at me and said me that if I wanted to win, I needed his expert opinion. Winning isn’t that important to me, I’m just participating for my mom’s sake, but then he reminded me about our plan. Our plan to take Nicole down and make her regret the way she’s treated me all these years.

“Well, I guess that even when the prodigal son screws up, something good comes out of it. He truly can do no wrong, can he?”

I’m surprised at how bitter he sounds. I can see why they’re not exactly best friends, both are too different for that to happen, but they’ve also grown up together and know each other better than anyone else. Why is it that ever since he’s come back, Cole’s treated Jay with nothing but hostility?

“It still doesn’t make it right, Cole; he shouldn’t have said all that about Travis and Jenny.” He looks surprised and takes his eyes off the road to study me. “You haven’t forgiven him by now?”

“It’s not exactly easy. I’ve always thought that he was a different person and that somehow Nicole was tricking him into being with her but now . . .”

“You’ve realized that they might not be that different?"

I nod before I realize what I’m doing. It hurts to acknowledge the truth, to find out that the person you’ve obsessed over for as long as you can remember is closer to being someone you hate.

“We’re going to kick butt at the competition, Tessie, and when we win I promise I’ll let you bash my brother’s head in with the trophy.”

I chuckle at his enthusiasm and shake my head. “It’s not a wrestling match, Stone, it’s a beauty pageant, and my trophy will most likely be a plastic tiara.”

“Well don’t those things have sharp pointy combs? You can dig them into his eye or something.”

“You have a really twisted mind, you know that?”

“Thank you, shortcake.” He smiles that boyish smile of his like I’ve given him the biggest compliment of his life and warmth spreads through my chest. He looks so happy and carefree that it’s infectious.

***

The rest of the ride I try not to look at him or focus on the hand that’s resting on the stick shift, dangerously close to my thigh. Once or twice his fingers accidentally brush across it and jolts of electricity pass through my body.

Trouble. This is going to cause so much trouble for me._ Why_ on Earth did my mother ask him to be my partner and _what_ on Earth possessed him to agree? He loathes formal occasions and wearing tuxes. He calls them penguin suits and mocks anyone who dares to wear them. Then I remember his saying that together the two of us were guaranteed to win due to his, and I quote, “Killer sexy godlike looks, and my ‘meh,’ good genes.”

We arrive at the mall to find it bustling with shoppers. Cole grabs my hand, startling me as he pushes us through the throngs of people. He makes nothing of the action but my heart rate has spiked, a traitorous blush colors my cheek, and I’m starting to sweat through the thin cardigan I have on. Once in a space we can actually breathe in, he lets go of my hand and then places his at the small of my back as he guides us.

“So where do you want to go first?” he asks but I can’t make heads or tails of whatever’s come out of his mouth. I'm way too aware of where his hand is rubbing my back slightly. He slept in the same bed as me and that didn’t freak me out as much as this is! It’s not normal for this to happen. I can't be blushing because of Cole Stone, it’s so absurd!  
“

Tessie?” He sounds a little worried as we walk up to where the escalators are. I cannot let him see that he’s affecting me the way he is. I’ll be just another girl who falls under his spell and then once he sees that he’ll leave me alone. I like being special and I don’t want him to leave me alone. Not just yet.

“Sorry, I guess I just spaced out a bit.”

He grins, a satisfied gleam in his eye as he bends down and whispers in my ear, “I bet you did.”

***

We’ve been to about eight different stores and I cannot find a dress that doesn’t make me want to throw up. Why must society force us to wear that amount of glitter or pink? Seriously people, I’m not the love child of Edward Cullen and Tinker Bell. I'm just a whiny teenager.

“Okay, that’s it, shortcake, I need a break,” Cole pants as he falls behind. He’s being so dramatic- we haven’t even been through half of this floor. Well, technically this is the fourth floor we’ve been on, but still, the guy needs to get a grip.

“Come on, don’t be a wuss, Stone. Let’s just see what shops they have here and then we’ll go to the food court.”

He bends, resting his hands on his knees and shakes his head furiously. “No more dresses, I beg you, Tessie. If I hear one more thing about lace detailing, I’ll keel over.”

I sigh in defeat and decide to have pity on the poor guy. He’s not used to walking around malls all day and I’ve perfected the art. Since my friends and I don’t go to parties or do other recreational things, we shop on a regular basis so it’s not as tiresome for me.

“Look, how about you go sit in that café over there and I’ll meet up with you once I look through Shirley’s Boutique?” I point at the shop a few feet away from us.

“Amen,” he says and walks away without questioning my decision. I smile at his retreating back and realize that we’ve actually been having a good day. He hasn’t been crude- well, not too much. He’s only tried to hit on me once or twice and hasn’t directly insulted me, which is definitely progress.

I walk over to the boutique and am immediately nauseated by the smell of perfume. It’s pungent and making my eyes water. I fight back the coughing fit that’s threatening to arise and rush out of the store before colliding into someone.

“Tessa?” the person I’ve knocked into questions and I stop apologizing long enough to look into the eyes of the boy I’ve been smitten by since I was eight.

“Jay?” I ask incredulously.

Seriously, oh you fickle thing called fate? Am I the butt of every joke they plan up there? 

“What are . . .” we begin in unison and then stop awkwardly. The stars that sparkle in front of my eyes whenever I’m around him are surprisingly absent. All I can do right now is think back to the words he said about my brother.

“I came here to find a dress, what about you?” I mutter, staring at my shoes.

“I just started working here as a salesman on some weekends. It’s good money.”

“That’s nice.” I tug at the sleeve of my cardigan and shuffle my feet. Well, this is uncomfortable.

“Did you drive all the way here alone? It’s not safe, Tessa.” He sounds stern with just a hint of possessiveness to his voice. I don’t want to feel giddy at the thought but I do. It’s nice to know that he cares.

“No, I got a ride.”

“Who'd you get the ride from?”

“Listen, it was nice seeing you, but I have to go,” I say in a rush, before he can find who I’m here with exactly.

“Wait up,” he calls and I know he’s following me as I scurry away. It’s not long before he catches up and pulls me back by the arm. His fingers curl around my forearm as he looks at me with confusion written all over his face. I refuse to meet his eyes and bite back my tongue. I don't trust myself to stay quiet and not kick his ass and tell him how he’s hurt me and my family.

“What’s wrong? Why aren’t you talking to me?”

I open my mouth but he cuts me off. “Is it because of what I said about you and Cole? Look, I’m sorry about that, really sorry. I saw you guys in the pool and I don’t know why I just exploded.”

“Jay, I-”

“-I’m so sorry, Tessa. I’m an idiot, I know that. Can we just start over?”

“You got the idiot part right.”

Cole’s lazy drawl has the hair on the back of my neck standing up. I know he’s right behind me because I can feel his breath fanning the nape of my neck.

Jay’s face hardens as he looks at his stepbrother but he stays where he is, close to me. His fingers tighten around my arm to the extent that it hurts, making me wince.

“So you two are here together.”

“And you’re an oblivious prick. Now that we’re done stating the obvious, you can let go of her.” I get chills just from listening to his voice.

“You don’t own her, so you stop acting like her damn father.”

I look at Jay like he’s grown a second head. Whoa, when on earth did he become so brash?

Cole scoffs, “Trust me, right now she might just prefer my fatherly behavior to your face.”

Jay’s eyes dart to mine as if waiting for me to deny Cole’s words but I can’t bring myself to do it. His face falls in disappointment as I remain silent. It hurts to know that I’m causing Jay Stone pain but he shouldn’t have insulted my brother like that or stood by silently for years letting his girlfriend walk all over me.

“I get it. I’m sorry for interrupting whatever you two are up to.”

“It’s not...” I begin but he’s not listening to me but is instead glaring at Cole. I’m let out of his grip and Cole brings me to his side, an arm wrapping around me protectively.

“You don’t have to explain. I know when I’m not needed. You have him now.”

Why is he making it sound like I’m the bad guy here? Why does he care so much? He raises his hands defensively and backs away from us.

“Remember, Tessa, when he screws up and ends up hurting you, I’ll still be there.”

He turns on his feet and walks away from us, leaving me standing there absolutely baffled. What just happened?

“Forget about him," Cole says with a shake of his head. "He really is an idiot.”

Cole grabs my hand and takes me to the other stores I wanted to go to, but the only thing I can think about is Jay’s parting words. _Is there any truth to them?_


	14. Chapter 14

Beth is a lot of things. She’s tough. She’s confident, outgoing, unapologetic, and a little too punk rock. What I haven’t pegged her as is someone who’s as interested in my love life as the rest of the town is at the moment. Beth-yes, my perfectly-sane-if-just-a-little-out-there friend- is starting to freak me out with her constant look of absolute amazement on her face. It’s somewhat uncomfortable to have her eyes boring in on me like this, especially in response to what I’ve told her.

“You’re going to the charity gala?”

“Yes.”

“You’re participating in that demeaning competition?”

I cringe at her words but nevertheless, I repeat what I just said.

“Cole’s your partner?”

I nod my head and she sighs. “I knew I’d lose you to the establishment one day. Meghna, I could imagine pulling this on me. But you, Tessa? I’m just disappointed.”

“Oh, Beth, come on," I say. "There’s no establishment. My mom blackmailed me into entering the pageant and I have to go to the gala because my dad's the mayor.”

“Details, details.” She dismisses my rebuttal with a flick of the wrist and collects her books from her locker. We walk side to homeroom, where we get the honor of watching half our class mess around on their phones and the other half stare into blank space as Miss Sanchez reads her tabloids.

“But I’ve always gone to the gala, ever since I was little. Why are you getting mad at me now?”

“I’m not_ mad_.” She sighs again. “It’s just that for the last two years you’ve been the only person I can trash the stupid tradition with. Remember how we always snuck out halfway through your dad’s speech?”

I smile, remembering the good times. Her face softens and she bumps my elbow fondly, nudging me away from a group of jocks that look a little too like Hank for anyone's comfort.

“Well, it’s different this year. I feel like my family’s finally getting our shit together and I want it to work,” I reply, clutching my books to my chest and stumbling as someone roughly pushes by me.

"Hey, watch it! Some of us have functioning eyes!” Beth yells over her shoulder and then shakes her head. “Listen, I'm sorry about badgering you over that stupid gala. I just have a bad feeling about this. Nicole’s not going to be happy about you entering- she's already desperate enough to win this thing without you involved, and she's definitely scheming enough to try and take you down.”

“Though,” she continues on before I get a chance to open my mouth, “if you beat her, then it could change everything.”

I listen to her talk about the new world order and the possibilities of global domination as we get near our classroom. She sounds a lot like Cole right now. Both are under the impression that winning a beauty contest would help me dethrone Nicole and take her place as the new Queen Bee, as if the real high school social pyramid is that simple to scale. I don’t want that, nor have I ever wanted that, but to see her lose what she cherishes most... well, it would be quite a sight. That’s the plan: Take away all that she treasures most and, being as as Machiavellian as she is, the odds are good that it's her social status.

***

I don’t see Cole in any of our classes. Even though I tell myself that I don't want to see him, I keep an eye out for a flash of blonde hair in the hallways. I don't see Jay either, but I don't feel the quite the same wave of disappointment that I usually do. At first I begin to worry that the encounter at the mall might have led to something more, but then Beth points out that all the jocks are missing. In between hanging around me and having Mexican standoffs with Jay, Cole tried out for the football team. To no one's surprise, he sweeps through tryouts and ends up as the varsity linebacker. I thought he'd be more at home on Offense, given his "fight" with Hank, but when I asked Cole, he just snorted and said he'd always been a better defender. As the first half of the day progresses into lunch, I learn that the varsity athletes have been drafted into gala set-up duty. A kind of fear creeps into me as I walk into the cafeteria to find that my safety net is missing. Whenever Cole couldn't eat lunch with us, he'd have one of his teammates watch out for us and jee would watch out for us, keeping the bullying to a minimum. We also got to sit at the table Cole had claimed on his very first day but today Beth and I are confused as to what will happen.

Cautiously I take a seat at said table and take a look around the room. Sure enough Nicole’s glaring at me from where she’s sitting but as time ticks by and she does nothing to inflict humiliation on me, I begin feeling relieved.

Someone taps my shoulder and I immediately start conjuring vicious scenarios in my head. This is it, Tessa, this is where Nicole unleashes her wrath on you. It’s all been too good to be true.

“Why is that plankton at our table?” Meghna and Beth stare at someone behind me. I let out a breath when it’s obvious that it isn’t the “Let’s make Tessa’s life miserable” squad. I crane my neck to find a burly freshman boy smiling widely at the both of us. Typically, we stick to the food chain in this school and don’t fraternize with those below us.


End file.
